Science Markup Languages

WinDrawChem from the previous post works off Chemical Markup Language (CML).

There's another language called CellML being developed by Auckland Bioengineering Institute. My eyes lit up as I checked the website! It does mathematical modelling.

CellML

Auckland Bioengineering Institute

Biological processes are modelled by Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML).

SBML

Chemistry Drawings

This weekend was supposed to be a time to relax, but I have many things to rant about!

I was trying to install a 2-D molecule drawing program. It is called XDrawChem. There were several system requirements:

• Qt by Nokia - website
• OpenBabel - website
• C++ Compiler - website
• BUILD3D - found under XDrawChem Sourceforge site.

I didn't read the introduction page about XDrawChem carefully. In the first paragraph there is a link saying 'Windows'. That link would allow a 5-min download for WinDrawChem.

What I did download were:

• The UNIX version, which does't run on my operating system;
• Qt, a 1.6 GB download that finished my bandwidth quota for the month;
• OpenBabel at dial up speed;
• C++ compiler at snail's pace;
• BUILD3D way after my bed time :'(

Just now I downloaded and installed WinDrawChem. It crashed when I input SMILES or try to open an example. I wish I know more about computers.

Half an hour of hair pulling later...

I can use it now. The import function has some bugs but a partially working application is better than none. Yay!

My New Phone

My replacement phone arrived today. I was excited but setting it up became a drawn out process.

Haven't had a parcel for a while.

It is a Vodafone 845 made by Huawei.

There was also a recycle package for unwanted mobiles.

Trapped Miners in Chile

I'm following the news about the 33 trapped miners in Chile. They might be rescued soon.

I guess there will be a book and film made to document what happened.

This reminds me of a 1993 movie called 'Alive' (1993) about an Uruguayan plane crash. The survivors resorted to eating the corpses of the other passengers. I don't know why I thought of it, since the two events are unrelated. Maybe something terrible happened to both groups so survival instincts kicked in. The miners have been forced to change their lifestyle - give up almost everything for a couple of months.

How much adversity can a person take? The miners are going through trials in endurance and have exceeded expectations.

I hope they get top side soon!

to the masquerade...

to the masquerade... by Fan-Chen Jeanie Tseng featuring metal shoes

evening gown with accessories