Stuff I can't show

Great blog-fodder, isn't it! I'm working on a propsal for a book - I'm pretty sure it was a targetted email to knit bloggers, but I took the bait!

Stuff I can show:

Despite the Royal Fail's best efforts, my first Craftster swap has concluded with the delivery of this bag of goodies

The (not really a) Mystery Shawl makes it's first appearance here since ... does a quick search of own blog ... THE NINTH OF NOVEMBER LAST YEAR!!! Slap me with a kipper and call me a slacker! Don't really - I'm vegetarian!

This was from a Yahoo Group (now defunct) where you got a clue every couple of weeks and attempted to keep up. Obviously I have failed miserably, but it's still a nice shawl!

Also making a return appearance is Tubey (last mentioned on the 23rd of June this year):

I'm at about elbow length and working a 3/1 rib down to the wrists.

That's all for now, I think. Not much time for sewing becuase I've been helping my mum with some serious gardening (it involved a pair of lopers!)

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Technorati tags: yarn; knitting;

No turning back

I sent the examinable component of my last university course today. I can't get it back now. That's it. The next thing I'll hear about it is when the postcard stamped by the university saying it got there safely arrives with me sometime next week. The result should be available the week before Christmas.

All of that work didn't stop me shopping or crafting though ...

Fabric 'n' whatnot:

I'll be making a shirt tunic (not a shirt dress) from the black and white fabric. The tartan-look stuff I got for free from the shop owner - the advantage of shopping locally and nattering!

Large buttons (left) or small (right)?

Star Swap:

I'm involved in a swap on Craftster and this is what I made for my swap pal:

The Royal Fail Mail managed to loose the parcel that was coming to me, so my partner is (as we speak) making another. I feel really sorry for her - it's both our first swap as well. Maybe I should have warned her about my (undeserved) bad swap karma?

Snake Skin Socks:

Progress here also:

I think that's everything. It's been a tough week for me personally and so I'm off to spend some time with my mum and knit. Perfect.

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Technorati tags: yarn; knitting; sewing; socks

S is for

Statistics!

I swear I didn't plan this! I was going to do socks or something like that, but anyway, here we are! The graphs and raw data are images to give the best accessability for everyone, but for those that want (email me) I can supply the spreadsheet in Open Office or Excel format.

For the geeky among us, the stats test I used was the Spearmint Rhino Spearman Rank correlation coefficient. And just for Anne, I did the standard deviation (see the last photo).

I made the pics fairly small on the blog for those on dial-up or restricted bandwidth. Click on the pictures to be taken to Flickr where you will be able to see them full-sized (or larger in any case). If you use Firefox, simply right-click on the pictures and choose "Open in New Tab" from the menu; that way you will be able to keep this post open while you look at the pictures.

Note: the straight line is the linear regression for each graph.

Heel depth against foot circumference:

Heel depth against ankle circumference:

Heel depth against foot length:

Raw data:

What does all this mean? My mum and me aren't all that unsual after all! There is a strong correlation between heel depth and ankle circumference, foot circumference and foot length. Plus, I made some pretty graphs!
Thanks for indulging me, and I hope that you feel you're contribution was worthwhile.

S is also for Science. Here's a quick round up:

0: 2003 UB313 re-named Eris (the Greek goddess of discord!)
o: Oldest New World writing discovered (and they probably had better grammar than today's teenagers!)

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Technorati tags: statistics; feet; science

Linking me, linking you

Aahhhhhhhaaaa! (Depending on your generation, and the kind of TV you watch, that will either be Abba, or Alan Partridge.)

I found this over on the "But you don't look sick" blog. Some of my favourites:

o: Really? That's not what my psychiatrist told me.
o: Would a bit of vomit help? Because I'm feeling quiet nauseous.
o: And you don't look stupid!
o: Are you flirting with me?
And finally...
o: Should I get a refund?
After 14 years, I've developed a pretty sick sense of humour myself! Of course, it's not all fun and games. Take, for example, howling uncontrollably for half an hour because you spilt your full cup of coffee. To be fair, I was very stress and tired after the fortnight from hell (still am).

Stuff from t'internet:

Very cool knit/crochet jumper, over at Crochet Me.
My picks from the new knitty: Lucie (very practical and pretty), Ivy (baby cable rib - my favourite!), Serrano (really pretty and practical), Lizzard Ridge (and if you can only look at one, let it be this!), Red Herring socks (a really good unisex pattern), Cable Net (really fancy-looking 1-stitch cable socks)

Now, having given myself two days off from the end-of-degree assignment, I'm back to the grind stone on Tuesday. Oh, I'm nearly there with the foot science. I just need four or five more data sets to make it to 20 (the magic number for small-time stats). You know how they say size doesn't matter? It does in statistics!

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Technorati tags: yarn; knitting; maths; statistics; knitty

R is for

Rose:

No more recent photos but it now looks much the same, only with added fungi! It's supposed to have red flowers (like the county I live in) but it's never flowered. I told it last winter that if it didn't buck up it's ideas I was going to move it. The leaves you see above are as a result of that telling off.

Feet measuring update: some interesting early results, but I need more data. I'm looking at getting nearer to 20 data sets so if you haven't already grabbed a tape measure, go to this post and measure away! Thanks. For those that are interested, I'm using The Spearman Rank correlation (or The Spearmint Rhino correlation as I call it!).

Oh, and I've (well, my dad has) fixed my blog code, so it should look spiffy in all most browsers and in all most systems.

And I've got a 500 word conclusion to write for the 5000 word essay I'm still tinkering with. Due date? Week ending the 22nd AT THE LATEST. Gulp.

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Technorati tags: yarn; knitting;

A little science in your living room

Or dining room. Or on your front porch!

A little background: my mum reckons that we (me and her) have an unusually wide heel depth in comparison to the rest of our feet. I would like to approach this in a scientific manner, and so I need some external help.

I need three measurements: heel depth, foot circumference and ankle circumference. I have ably enlisted the help of my foot to demonstrate what I mean (but use a tape measure not a piece of elastic like I did!)

First, catch your foot. Geeky sock optional

Measurement 1:

Measurement 2:

Measurement 3:

I'd love it if you could take these three measurements (with foot length/shoe size optional) and email me or leave me a comment. These can be in centimetres or inches, and the shoe size can be European/UK/US/Japanese/Klingon - I have the power to do the conversion. Well, a clever little table, anyway! I'll then do some magical jiggery-pokery with some stats software and I'll see if there is any correlation! Yes, I'm a geek. This is an established fact, and I'm fine with it. Really, I'm fine with it.

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Technorati tags: geek; knitting;