J. Luke's Geology Blog

Test

2009-09-17T16:27:00.000-07:00

Last Movie

2008-12-05T09:50:00.001-08:00

Today we learned how to finish our GIS assignment by adding all the necessary map attributes.

I got lost on how to make the page layout and put the map on it. So, yeah, need to figure that out.

The last movie I saw in the theater was........Indiana Jones I think.

Toughest Thing to do in Next 2 Weeks

2008-12-03T09:50:00.000-08:00

Today we went outside and visited a garbage can. Unfortunately Oscar the Grouch wasn't there. We were trying to learn how to use the GPS receiver but it wasn't picking up enough satellites.

No questions.

The toughest thing I have to do in the next two weeks is probably my Petroleum Systems Analysis presentation on the Talara Basin.

ArcGIS Labeling

2008-12-01T09:22:00.001-08:00

Today we learned how to fill our formations and label them. It was pretty simple.

And guess what, I have no questions or frustrations.

I don't know that I have a favorite internet site, but these are a few that I visit often:

CNN.com, KSL.com, ESPN.com, Netdisaster.com-which for some reason is blocked, and a few others.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T09:59:00.001-08:00

Friday is here, I mean tuesday, err...

So today we learned how to play in 3D in GIS. It was pretty sweet.

I have no frustrations or questions.

Thanksgiving plans? Headed to the inlaws in good ol' Orangeville. It should be very relaxing and I'll probably gain a few pounds.

ArcGis Day 2

2008-11-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

Today we learned how to add units to our Dinoquarry file. We also started to learn how to draw shapes on our maps.

I have no questions. Although, it is frustrating that we have to wait for those that are behind to catch up during class. -and then hear them whine about having so much due..."step up or step out!" -Thanks Doc.

-I'm glad no one reads this blog. I'll get off my "high horse" now. Ha.

Anyways,

I don't start listening to Christmas music until a few weeks before Christmas day.

ArcGis

2008-11-20T13:54:00.000-08:00

Today we learned how to georeference our mylar images in GIS. Hopefully I'll remember how to do that.

No questions, for now.

A book I recently? Wow, I haven't read anything besides papers and textbooks in the past 6 months. I did read part of the Chronicles of Narnia, and was all excited because I was going to get through a novel. Nevertheless I still lost interest as I usually do and haven't picked it back up.

ArcGIS

2008-11-17T09:50:00.000-08:00

Well, today we learned some about some basic functions with ArcGIS. We learned about the ArcMap, add info, ArcCatalog, and Raster Icons. We also learned where to download topo maps.

I have no questions.

my favorite place to eat is the Blue Bayou restaurant in Disneyland. I mean, I have only gone there once but once was enough, WOW!

Test Review

2008-11-14T09:49:00.000-08:00

Today we went over the test review. It was good to see some of the things I've already forgotten how to do. Hopefully I will remember them for the test eh?

No questions.

A joke? Found this on the world wide web:

A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: “My friend is dead! What can I do?”

The operator, in a calm soothing voice says: “Just take it easy. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead.” There is a silence, then a shot is heard.

The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says: “OK, now what?“

Powerpoint

2008-11-12T09:46:00.000-08:00

Today we learned how to make a sweet presentation using powerpoint. I did learn a few new things so I guess it was worth my time....

I don't have any questions.

Adam's Presentation:

The noises are very distracting and loud.
Spelling is wrong.
Figures are blurry.
Text is hard to see against the background.
Figures overlay each other.
Animations are lame.
Offensive slide about old people.
Bad mission joke.
Gave excuses for bad presenting skills.
Presenting with a soccer shirt, very professional indeed.
Figures are distorted.

Favorite Class So Far

2008-11-10T09:52:00.001-08:00

Today we learned how to make a poster in illustrator. Just for fun I was making this:

I have no frustrations. I thought making a poster was a lot more difficult.

My favorite class so far has been Geology 230 of course. Hehe.

Where have I lived?

2008-11-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

Today we learned how to use the eraser, scissor, and knife tools. We also learned how to use guides and gradients.

No frustrations here.

Where have I lived?

I lived in Green River, Utah for 18 years, Northern Peru for 2 years, and Utah County for almost 4 years.

Illustrating Cross Sections

2008-11-03T09:44:00.000-08:00

Today we learned how to make a cross section using illustrator. We used the divide tool, pen tool, and eyedropper tool. We also learned how to use the transparency tool to blend things together.

No frustrations here, hopefully I'll be able to duplicate this when I need to.

Freebee. Shouldn't it be spelled freebie? Well, according to blogger it should. I don't know that I would like to have a "freebee." Bees don't seem to like me, in fact, I got stung by one on the first week of 210 and it really hurt. Well, I don't have class right now like I usually have, so I'll go continue the 100's of pages that were assigned by Doc to read.

Halloween

2008-10-31T09:49:00.000-07:00

Today we learned how to make a strat column by using the pen tool, lithologic swatches and the divide tool. It was pretty sweet and would have come in handy in my previous geology courses.

I don't have any frustrations today, it was awesome.

What are my Halloween plans tonight? Well, my wife is in Denver so I'll probably watch some really scary movies by myself and freak myself out and not go to sleep. I'll probably have to call her at 2am so she can calm me down. I can't wait.

2008-10-29T09:46:00.000-07:00

Today we went over the layers palette. We also learned how to group objects together. We learned how to use swatches and also learned how to use the lithologic swatches which was pretty dang cool.

Today it was hard for me to duplicate what Nicole was doing. It usually isn't hard but for some reason I couldn't follow along.

My favorite Halloween costume would have to be when I was Alfalfa from the Little Rascals. I think it was my favorite because I won a prize for most creative or cutest or something like that.

The Future

2008-10-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

Today we started to learn about Adobe Illustrator. First we looked at some bad and decent figures. Then we learned some basic function in illustrator.

I don't really have any frustrations. I just hope to be able to know how to use illustrator better after this.

What would I like to know about the future?

Well, I would like to know where the stock market will be in 5-10 years. It would be great, if I had the money, to be able to invest in some stocks that are down right now knowing that they would skyrocket later on.

Mini Assignment 4

2008-10-24T09:38:00.001-07:00

Today we learned how to use the clone tool. I think this might be my favorite tool so far. Who knew it was so easy to remove unwanted objects/people from my pictures? Not me.

I don't have any questions or frustrations.

I can be a somewhat superstitious person. For example, I don't walk over handicap parking images...not sure why, maybe cause I fear that if I do I'll break my leg or something? There are other little things, but overall I'm really not THAT superstitious.

Here is my mini assignment #4:

To do this I overlayed the two photos and reduced opacity in one of them to get the best place to merge them. I then used the crop tool, and then the eraser tool to try and erase the seam on the left hand side. I also used the clone tool to remove one of the baboons. I removed the sky because it was basically just white. I replaced the sky with the sky from another photo from the same place so that it is showing what the true sky looks like. I also used the gradient tool on the sky to make it look more natural.

Mini Assignment 3

2008-10-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

Today we learned how to merge photos and create a panorama. It was pretty cool to learn how to put images together.

I have no frustrations.

I am a pretty die hard sports fan. I like to watch football, baseball, basketball, golf, etc. I usually just watch college sports besides baseball and golf. My wife is really in to mlb baseball so she has got me into watching it, although she hasn't converted me to a braves fan and probably never will....

Here is my mini assignment 3:

I used the dodge and burn tools as well as the crop tool. I also adjusted the levels.

Burn and Dodge

2008-10-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

Today we learned how to use the burn and dodge tools, as well as the Gaussian blur and eraser tool. I really liked playing with the burn and dodge tool, in fact, I made a button:

I don't have any frustrations, everything is cool.

My favorite fall activities are hunting and watching and playing football/baseball while eating pumpkin pie.

Playing in Photoshop

2008-10-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

Today we learned how to create a magazine type cover. We learned how to make our text pretty and create a border around the image. These tools will probably be very useful.

No frustrations here, although it took me a little while to find an image to use so I was a little behind, but I caught up eventually.

What was my best date ever?

hmmmmmmm. I will have to come back to that later. Okay, my best date ever was when I took my girlfriend to Disneyland. Yeah, I think that says enough, it doesn't require any explanation.

Here is my photoshop mini-assignment 2:

For this assignment I used the ruler tool to make my picture more vertical. I also used the levels and color balance options to make the colors come out and make the picture look much better. Here is the original picture:

Also, here is my magazine cover from today:

I started adding a bunch of images just for fun.

Photoshop mini assignment 1

2008-10-15T09:50:00.001-07:00

First of all, here is my photoshop mini assignment 1:

I used the move tool, the crop tool, and I also used the quick selection tool to remove the white space around the Christmas tree even though it wasn't required to do so.

So today we learned how to use the ruler tool, and how to adjust our image to bring out the more natural colors. We also learned how to use the quick selection tool and the magic wand tool.

Everything is crystal clear, no frustrations.

My worst injury happened when I was 8. We had a foreign exchange student from Hungary named Balint. We were playing catch with a baseball and for some reason he decided to throw it as hard as he could. (He was 17 or so) Anyway, I tried to catch it but it was deflected off the top of my mitt and hit me right above the left eye. It made a pretty good mark. I really wouldn't have said that it was my worst injury but today as I walked into class Taryn pointed at it like it was just something recent. I think she was pointing and making fun, but I have no way of knowing for sure.... Apparently when I exert myself to rigorous activity (like from the swim class I have before this one) it is more noticeable? usually no one notices it. Thanks Taryn. :)

Photoshop

2008-10-13T09:51:00.001-07:00

Today we learned some basic functions in Photoshop. We learned about the palettes, some tools and how to crop. I'm pretty excited to learn more and play around with Photoshop.

I don't have any frustrations, just anxious to start using Photoshop.

It is hard to pick just one favorite season, I mean, there are 4 of them! I mean, I love summer because of no school and spending time camping, water skiing, hiking, etc., but I also like Winter because I love snowboarding. Then again, I also like fall because it is really pretty up in the mountains and it is hunting season. However, I really like spring because it is the perfect temperature around these parts and it is great to come out of a gloomy winter. So, I guess I can't pick just one.

Casper the Friendly Dog

2008-10-10T09:41:00.001-07:00

Today we did a test review. It was helpful to see what we can expect to be tested on. The review sheet will be helpful.

The only frustration I have is I'm not really sure what a test question is going to look like. I guess I will know soon!

I used to have a little puppy dog named Casper. It was all white, hence the name. Anyway, I had to beg my parents to get it. So I took care of Casper as best I could, I think I was 10 or so. We had a lot of good memories together. One day, however, I got home and Casper wasn't anywhere to be found. I was really worried and we came to find out that the city people had shot it out in a field close to my house because they said it was eating sheep. *Tear. I find it hard to believe that it could take down a sheep, since it was just a little tiny, nice dog. I'm sure the city guy that shot it was drunk, since he usually was, and out for a little fun I guess.

High Adventure Activity

2008-10-08T09:45:00.000-07:00

Today was kind of boring, until we got to make charts out of our data. I haven't played with the design to much on making charts so it was cool to see how to make the chart look like I want it to.

I don't have any frustrations. Everything is crystal clear.

If money wasn't an issue, I would go to Africa and climb Mt. Kilamanjaro. While in Africa, I would head to S. Africa and hunt the Big 5: lions, leopards, cape buffalo, elephants, and rhinos. Yeah, that would be pretty high adventure.

Biggest Difference

2008-10-06T09:42:00.000-07:00

The crater with the biggest difference in diameter is object 36 with a difference of 8592.8 meters.

I don't have any questions or frustrations.

As far as my favorite breakfast food goes, it would have to be cinnamon french toast. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm nothing better than some french toast with a hint of cinnamon. Now I am really hungry. Maybe I will have some french toast when I get home, for dinner.

Excellerator

2008-10-03T08:44:00.000-07:00

Today we learned some basic functions of excel. I have used excel quite a bit in my internet marketing job. However, there are still a lot more I would like to learn because I know excel is very powerful. Hopefully I will learn something new and cool about excel in this class.

I don't have any frustrations. I will have some if we don't learn a lot about excel though! (I'm just kidding....kinda)

So, musical instruments I play eh? Well I might need to make a bullet list out of this one:

(In order of skill, best to worst)

* Piano
* Organ
* Guitar
* Trumpet
* Drums (set)
* Harmonica
* I also play a pretty mean guitar on GuitarHero. Click Here to see the Video!!

There might be more but I'm late for my next class.

Adobe Acrobat

2008-10-01T09:52:00.001-07:00

Well, that was really cool. I didn't know that adobe acrobat pro was so powerful. It will be fun to play around with it and make my paper look pretty.

I don't have any frustrations, that was a good lecture.

As far as a crazy relative goes, I do have an uncle that is missing most of his teeth and tells pretty crazy/awesome stories. He's a truck driver and has done some pretty crazy things, but it'd probably be best if I don't mention any here...

Worst. Movie. Ever.

2008-09-29T09:44:00.000-07:00

1. Today we learned how to use Word 2007 to edit a paper. It was very helpful and it is awesome to be able to track my editing changes.

2. At the end we talked about how to make sure all the changes are gone for the final paper, and I'm not sure how we did that.

3. The worst movie I have ever seen is Epic Movie. We only got through a few minutes of it. Yeah, it was that bad.

How to Write a Paragraph

2008-09-26T08:30:00.000-07:00

My ah-ha moment today came when I realized how important it is to have an issue, discussion, and point in a paragraph.

Everything I learned today was crystal clear and will be helpful in my future writing.

The following is the first paragraph in my proposal:

The depositional environment of the Entrada sandstone is dominated by eolian or windblown sand. Eolian dominated sands are known to be highly porous and permeable. However, the Entrada sandstone near Capitol Reef National Park is near the Entrada-erg margin and is influenced by a tidal flat depositional system. This paper proposes to investigate how the tidal flat facies within the Entrada may act as baffles or even barriers to fluid flow and operate as potential stratigraphic traps.

(The issue is in italics, the discussion is normal, and the point is in bold.)

Web Design

2008-09-24T09:45:00.000-07:00

1. Today we learned how to use the repository and upload our resume and pictures. It is all pretty clear to me.

2. There is nothing that is frustrating to me, I have a lot of experience creating web pages. I just wish we used WordPress instead of Joomla.

3. When I was a kid, I wanted to grow up to be a park ranger. That was probably because my dad worked for the state parks, and we visited a lot of national parks and it looked like fun.

Grammartime

2008-09-19T18:29:00.000-07:00

Today we learned about grammatical mistakes in scientific papers. I only know that because I have read other people's blog posts. I thought I would blog even though I'm up here in cowboy country. (Laramie, Wy)

What I did do today though was very relevant to what we have been discussing in class. I spent the entire day learning how to make my resume look even better. It was very helpful and I was able to update it for about the 10th time. We also spent a few hours talking about interviews. There was a recruiter there from Chevron and Shell so it was very helpful to hear their advice on both resumes and interviews.

Oh, and if I could have a superpower it would be to have the ability to see through the earth and its rock layers. No need for seismic when Strataman is around!

I'm not a tool.....

2008-09-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

So I'll be a color. If I could be any color I would be blue, because blue is a "cool" color but it can also be a very "hot" color, like the hottest part of a camp stove flame that Landon and I didn't have on 210...

So, yup, I would be blue.

Research Proposals

2008-09-15T09:33:00.001-07:00

Today we learned how to create a good research proposal. I realized how important it is to follow instructions if we want to get any research grant money. We also learned how to find articles using the library website.

I'm not really confused about anything we learned today, it was all crystal clear.

My dream vacation (in the US) is to take the entire summer and visit all of the national parks.

Interviewing!

2008-09-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

The most interesting thing that I learned today is the importance of preparing for an interview. I will be doing a number of interviews next week and realized how important it is to research the company that I will be interviewing with.

I don't really have any frustrations, besides the fact that I haven't done enough research on the companies that I will be interviewing with.

So how do I differentiate myself? I have a strong marketing background which is probably different than most people that are interviewing with me. However, I don't think that that is the best difference to have from the rest. I need to have more experience with mentorship and working in more geology related fields to be able to differentiate myself better.

Three Style Points on KSL

2008-09-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

I reviewed an article on KSL.com and want to point out three things about their style.

The first thing I noticed is the spacing between paragraphs. If I had a hard copy of this article, the many small paragraphs would look terrible on it. Nevertheless, because it is on the web it looks very good. Articles on the internet need to have more paragraphs so that the reader doesn't get lost or overwhelmed while looking at the screen.

The second thing I noticed is that both the title and body of the article is typed in sans serif. This is also typical on the internet because using a serif font makes the letters blur together on a computer screen.

The third thing that I noticed is that the width of the article is smaller than your typical word document. This is also typically seen on the internet so that the reader isn't overwhelmed with words.

Prankster

2008-09-10T09:41:00.000-07:00

Today I learned how to create a good CV/resume. I also learned how to create shapes in Word 2007 and lock them in place.

I'm still a little unsure on how to lock the shapes in place using the method shown in class. I was able to lock them in place using a similar method, so hopefully that works.

This is a prank my brother played on me:
One Christmas morning I saw a really big present underneath the tree that said it was from Santa. I saved it for last and when I opened it there was a big chunk of coal. Apparently my brother wrapped it and put it there. I was just a little kid so it was pretty sad, but he had a good laugh. I think my parents even knew that he did it, which kind of makes me a little upset now that I think about it....

Geology Blog

2008-09-03T09:43:00.000-07:00

So I created this blog a long time ago but never used it because I usually post on Luke Chronicles, which is my family blog.

I'm going to use this blog now for my geology 230 class.

I Can Do It!

2007-12-18T14:45:00.001-08:00

My acting career is soon to begin...

He Is Born

2007-12-15T20:28:00.000-08:00

This is Awesome.

Are Directories Worthless?

2007-11-13T13:10:00.001-08:00

So I am embarking on a new project and part of the SEO I am doing for that project involves submitting the site to a number of web directories. After doing some limited research however, I have found that most directories are pretty much worthless as far as giving much link love, and even those that do never seem to get their pages indexed by the search engine. For example, I have submitted to the following directories and these pages still aren't indexed:

A Big Dir
A Bot Directory
a2z
Add Link Suggest
4on
7si

So as you can see, even if the site does get eventually approved, chances are it will be months before it gets indexed! Now, I do think that directory submissions should be a PART of the SEO effort but definitely not a main priority.

BYU Vocal Point - Thriller

2007-11-01T13:19:00.001-07:00

Music 101

2007-11-01T13:10:00.000-07:00

I got a 97% on my music exam! For some reason I have done very well on my exams this semester, even though I feel like I'm just doing the minimum to get by. The Forex Trading Site is just about ready, it's unofficial launch was today but there are still a few minor tweaks before it is fully functional. If you just can't wait for it, in the meantime watch Vocal Point perform MJ's "Thriller" which I will be posting shortly.

My First Post

2007-10-29T15:33:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody!

Here is my first post on my newly created blog. I've started a new project at work with a website that will teach anyone how to make money off of the forex trading market. Stay tuned for more exciting posts to come.