Moneyball

1) What was the “Moneyball”approach that Billy Beane and Peter Brandt applied to the Oakland Athletics 2002 season? Was it an “art” or a “science”? What single statistic did they boil their value consideration down to? (In class research/discussion) They would go for the players that nobody esle wanted because they threw funny or lost the certain control in their hand. It was a "science". They boiled it down to the on bse percentage (OBP)

2) What is the equation used to calculate OBP? (In class research/discussion)


3) What is design? (In class research/discussion)
A plan or drawing produced to show the look and function or workings of a building, garment, or other object before it is built or made.

4) Describe 3 situations where movie characters (intentionally or not) applied a step from the PLTW 12 Step Design Process. Explain both the (a) situation as well as (b) how the step is relevant:1 - Billy Beane defined the problem with all the scouts when he lost his three best players.

2 - Peter Brand research and generated ideas when he found 51 one possible players and did evaluations on them.

3 - Billy Beane did the test and evaluate and refine step when he watched how the team did and then got rid of the younger Giambi and other players so that his team would be successful.

5) What is “Leadership”? List the three aspects of leadership that we come up with in class. (In class research/discussion)
1 - Direction
2 - Alignment
3 - Commitment

6) Describe 3 circumstances from the story where a character exercised effective leadership:
1 - Billy Beane had direction when he wanted to recreate the team with less expensive players.
2 -
3 -

7) According to the movie, what was the A’s record at the start of their winning streak? 76:51

8) What does this ratio simplify to (roughly)? 1.5 : 1

9) How long was the A’s record setting winning streak? 20 games won.

10) Given the A’s win/loss ratio at the start of the streak (listed two questions above), what are the odds of winning 20 games in a row? Run the numbers. (In class research/discussion) 1=(x)(.000037) = .00013

11) Based on your calculation, do you think the A’s got lucky or was there something to the Moneyball approach? I think they may have had a little luck, but it could also be possible that the team was just well put together and Billy and Peters' theories actually do work.

12) Did Billy Beane strictly apply the “science” of Moneyball to his management approach? Was there an “art” to his efforts as well? Describe a circumstance where he broke from the Moneyball approach to make a positive change for the team. He didn't just use science, he also used the art of choosing players and to win all those games. He broke away from the moneyball approach when he traded Giambi because he was one of the picks.

Bonus Question (look into this if you’ve finished ahead of the class):Money Ball was originally a book. What author wrote the book? What other books has this author written? Is there a theme to his writing? Michael Lewis, Boomerang, The Big Shot, Home Game, Panic.

It's "Oscar Season", will Moneyball win the Oscar for any of the categories it's up for? Best Actor and Best Picture

3.1.5

3.1.4

conclusion:

1. So the program repeats itself

2. Fuse Box

3. Back up power supplys

Social Media Explained

The Future of Prosthetic Limbs

A new prosthetic arm – operated by an individual’s thoughts – was used by wounded warriors at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) for the first time Jan. 24.

With nearly as much dexterity as a natural limb, 22 degrees of motion, and independent movement of fingers, the Modular Prosthetic Limb (MPL) was developed as part of a four-year program by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), along with WRNMMC and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU).

On Jan. 24, Air Force Tech Sgt. Joe Delauriers began using the nine-pound device, maneuvering its metallic fingers and wrist.

Four months ago, Delauriers was injured by an IED blast in Afghanistan, which caused him to lose both his legs and part of his left arm. He said it’s an indescribable feeling to be where he is today, thanks to advancements in care.

“It’s really fun working with the hand and [exciting] to see what’s going to be coming in the future,” said Delauriers.

With an amputee, the nerves traveling down the spinal cord are still intact, and they’re still connected to some of the muscles in the arm.

The prosthetic limb is controlled by surface electrodes, which pick up electric signals generated by the muscles underneath the skin, then convert those patterns in electrical signals into a robotic function.

“What we try to do is pick up the electrical signals of the muscles that still exist in the arm and interpret those, convert them to a computer signal to then drive a robotic limb,” said Col. (Dr.) Paul Pasquina, chief of Orthopaedics and Prosthetics at WRNMMC and director for the Center of Rehabilitation Sciences at USU. “When an individual is thinking about closing their hand, muscles will activate and the prosthetic limb will respond accordingly.”

Pasquina added that he’ll continue his efforts to make this technology available to all service members and the population at large.

“The hand in itself is so important in terms of one’s independence. Your ability to dress yourself, feed yourself, do self-grooming and hygiene is extremely important,” said Pasquina. “Many of our injured service members were highly functioning, highly independent, had a great amount of responsibility. To now find themselves in a situation where they have an impairment or disability, that makes them less independent is something that not only affects them physically, but affects them emotionally. Anything we can do to [help] them be more independent and to regain that sense of self is something we’re fully committed to doing and very excited about the opportunities that this presents.”

Original Article Here

The Invisible Case

Here's a cool video on probably what will be the newest coating for electronics across the market.

Robo Pro Flow Chart

1. Use the programs test function and turn the motor on, if it activites then it works.

2. Helps explain to others what each function is doing so that is eaiser to communicate and read.