The New/Old Prgramming Language

There is always anticipation and frustration learning a new programming language. Since I have started studying AI, I have gain an interest in Lisp, which is short for LISt Processor. John McCarthy, credited as being the father of artificial intelligence, created the language. Basically, he took some simple operators and created a language using lists as data structures and form for the language. It was not intended to be a programming language though, just a theory exercise. Here is a good essay about Lisp and programming languages in general by Paul Graham: Revenge Of The Nerds. If you want a more encyclopedia type description of Lisp, here is the Wikipedia page.

What I have had to get use to is the expressions. Everything in Lisp is written as a list starting with an open parenthesis and closing with a parenthesis. The elements inside the parenthesis are processed. In mathematical operations, the operator is the first element followed by the operands. An example is"

(+ 1 2 3 4)

The result is 10. In human readable form, this operation would be expressed as:

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10

See what I mean. I recently wrote in an email to a fellow IT Architect, Derek Burt, about learning Lisp

...On another note, I have been trying to learn Lisp (yeah....I said Lisp). It all started when I began studying AI. It seems Lisp is the preferred language for AI which makes sense since John McCarthy invented the language and he is considered the father of modern AI. I have to tell you, I am digging the language. Especially using a REPL (Read Evaluate Print Loop) inside Emacs. Since I started down this path, I am learning more about programming languages than I have ever before. Example terms and tools are:

Emacs (I have used VI many times, but not Emacs. I am not sold on it, but it is a favored editor for Lisp)
S-Expression (Studying Lisp has opened my eyes to s-expression and m-expression)
REPL (Read Evaluate Print Loop)
SLIME (Superior Lisp Enteractive Mode for Emacs)
Abstraction (A common term, but programming in Lisp really demonstrates the importance)

There is more. You see, I was a MIS major in college, which is programming to process information for business. I did not study computer science. I did in high school when I was in a magnet cluster program design to "raise" kids in school to learn computers and programming, but that was a long time ago. I went down this path to refresh my mind for IT and get the war behind me. I wanted to get excited about the IT industry again so I can perform when I become an active IBMer. What better way to "re-learn" programming than by learning another language?

More to come on my journey of learning Lisp.

House Cleaning

Have you ever look at your house and been disgusted and embarassed by the clutter? Well, that is how I have felt for over two weeks now. Today, I said enough is enough. I am going to clean and organize this place this week.

DAUGHTER'S ROOM
Let me clarify something. My house is not "dirty". There is no real dirt along the floor or on the tables. It is the clutter that agravates me. Unorganized piles of toys, artwork, crayons, markers, and jewlrey on my daughter's bedroom floor and closet is autrocious. To start my mission, I decided to buy some plastic boxes.
**update June 15, 2006**
Last week, I loaded all the toys into the plastic boxes. The toys that were not "complete" or my daughter was not interested in were taken to the Goodwill. You would be amazed at how much stuff that cleared up. With all the "undesirable" toys gone and the rest loaded in the plastic boxes, I was able to place all of them neatly into her closet. For the first time since I have been back from Iraq, I can see my daughter's floor. Now that she knows what right looks like, she has taken ownership of her room and keeps it clean. In addition, she does not let her younger brother mess it up. Organization can go a long way.

CLEANING MY HEAD
No, I do not have a "dirty" mind...well...sometimes. Building on what I learned about my Alexandra's room, I decided to organize my thoughts. You see, when I returned from Iraq, there was a thousand and one things I wanted to do. I wanted to take a vacation to Hawaii again, surf at Jax Beach, learn new programming languages such as Lisp (yeah, I said Lisp), create an intelligent bot program that could talk (this is where Lisp came from), and I wanted to write a book. See what I mean. Well, reality struck and I finally realized that I can not do everything at once. I need to organize my thought and prioritize my activities. More to follow...

The Start of a New Life

Hey, I have just returned from my year long deployment to Baghdad and now I am ready to restart my life with my wife and kids. In addition, I am trying to revamp my skills in Information Technology. Lets start there.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Today is the day I have started my studies of Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI has always interested my, but I have only studied what I could do with program code, not what it can do for me. During my first search of AI, I quickly learned about Alan Turing and the LISP programming language. LISP is a different kind of programming language. I never realized it is considered the second oldest active language. The oldest active language is FORTRAN. After a few more searches, I learned terms like neural networks, natural language processing, knowledge representation, automic reasoning, and machine learning. I seem to have a lot to learn.

WRITING MY FIRST BOOK
Yes, I have said it the entire time I was deployed, "I am going to write a book". Now that I am home, I have yet to start. Well, today I made a solid decision. I am going to write this damn book while the knowledge of the war is still fresh in my head. The real reason I have not started, other than being lazy, is because I did not want to think about the war. I wanted to forget about it and get on with my life. Today, I realize that I am being lazy and selfish. I need to share my experiences. My experiences go well beyond the actual deployment to Iraq. They go back to my first deployment in Bosnia when the war started. It then goes through my many projects with IBM, some related to the war. After that, my experience at the Infantry Captain Career Course at Fort Benning, GA and finally, my mobilization and deployment to Iraq. Whew, that is a lot. Well, like I said before, there is no time like the present.

A Good Day

Have you ever had a day where at the end you though to yourself, "today was a good day"? Well, today was one of those days. My day started a little risky with Joshua having to be sedated to get dental work done. You see, Joshua is teriffied of the dental drill. The sound makes him freak-out and unable to hold still for the dentist to do her work. As a result, an Anastiegiologist had to sedate him so the dentist can put on his crowns. Lesson learned to all, take care of your teeth.

BOAT IS BETTER
The boat is finally services and running good. The water test was conducted on Tuesday and she passed. After that, I had a professional detail the hull and inside the cabin. Unfortunately, some the the mildew stains can not be removed on the head liner. No fear, I found an expienced boat canvas person that can replace the headliner. Belive it or not, finding someone that knows how to do this kind of work is hard. Well, in support of the main theme of this blog entry, it was a good day. The detail work was good and we were able to tow the boat downtown to the boat canvas shop in my new Ford F250 King Ranch Powerstroke Truck.

I Am Back!

As most of you know by now, I am back on U.S. soil. I can not tell you how happy I am to be back; however, I will not be completely relieved until everyone from my Task Force returns safely from Iraq. You see, I returned a few weeks early as the Officer In Charge (OIC) of the Advance Party (ADVON). Basically, the ADVON plans for the return of the main body and outprocessing. There is so much I want to type, but I get exhausted everytime I try to start. Be that as it may, I decided to start another entry onto this blog and update the entry until I feel I have "expressed" myself enough on this topic.

A FATHER REUNITED WITH HIS KIDS
This was a million dollar momment. Hannash and I decided not to have the kids attend the brief Welcome Home ceremony at Fort Stewart's Cottrel Field, because it was very early in the morning (4 AM) and no one was really sure when we would arrive. It would have been difficult to manage two kids on a chilly night for several hours waiting for me to come home. Instead, my sister Leigh Ann kept the kids in Saint Marys and I would meet them there. Hannash also decided not to tell the kids I was returning early from Iraq; so, Alexandra and Joshua had no idea I was coming home. After a couple of days of medical review, Hannash and I drove to Saint Marys to meet this kids. The picture tells the rest of the story.

IED Battle Drill

Well, I just finished another covoy security mission. This particular mission was different for me, because I went with a team from one of our line companies. Usually when I go on missions, I go with the Task Force Commander's Personal Security Detatchment, or PSD. This time; however, I went with a team from 2 Platoon Alpha Company. This was a good thing, because I once was the Executive Officer (XO) for Alpha Company. It was good to go on a mission with them again. After it was all over, I learned a lot from a combat experienced team and what the battlefield is like on a particular route.

BOOM!
One word describes what it is like when an IED strikes your convoy. I was lucky in this instance, because I was at the front of the convoy. The IED struck the middle, but caused little damage. Small Arms Fire (SAF) followed after the IED detonated. Immediately, the middle gun truck returned fire to suppress the enemy as the convoy increased speed to get out of the kill zone. It has become a battle drill for our convoys. Little has to be said over the radio other than checking to see if everyone is alright. The convoy security team I was with are experienced veterans , in sync, needing very little instruction for what to do in this situation. As soon as I told my driver, SPC Williams, that the middle gun truck was hit by an IED, he immediately pressed down on the accelerator to guide the convoy out of the kill zone. SSG Bullwinkle, the convoy commander, was in the trail. His main concern was the soldiers in the middle gun truck. He shouted over the radio, "Oh my God, White One, are you OK?" Once "White One", SSG Vareen, said all was OK with no apparent damage to the truck, the convoy continued. A few kilometers down the road, one of the empty fuel tankers slowed down due to three flat tires. SSG Bullwinkle did not hesitate. He ordered the driver and assistant driver to load onto another truck and leave the damaged fuel truck on the side of the road to be recovered later. SSG Bullwinkle knew there was no time to fix the truck, because the convoy was engaged by enemy small arms fire. He wanted to get the convoy out of the danger area as fast as possible and leaving the damaged fuel truck was the best way to get everyone out safely. Keep in mind, all of this occured in less than five minutes. It all ocured like clockwork. Experience was driving force that lead the convoy to safety. Again, everyone executed like a well syncronized clock.

COMBAT HUMOR
NCOs have some "sick" sense of humor. After the convoy got hit by the IED and all went back to normal on the MSR, the convoy halted at a small base in southern Iraq. The purpose of the halt was to refuel the gun trucks. SSG Vareen immediately took the opportunity to say, "SSG Bullwinkle does not want to admit it, but he was crying on the radio when he thought I was hit." SSG Bullwinle immediately responded in defense, "I cried for joy because I thought you were gone and I would not have to put up with your sh#!t anymore."

There is a lot of love on the battlefield!

Time for Grad School

I think it is time for me to consider grad school. The thought crossed my mind when I started writing the history report for Task Force 2-121 Infantry. I recall a 120mm mortar round that had my name and many others on it. The round missed me, but caused eleven other casualties that hot day in August. One of the eleven did not make it. As I think about the value of life, I think it is time I stop "dragging my feet" and start working towards long-term goals I have set for myself. One goal is to earn a Masters degree in Information Systems. I mean, why not? What is so hard about school? It really is not that hard. What is hard is wondering what it is like instead of knowing what it is like. Just like the old Nike slogan says, "Just Do It".

I GOT SELECTED!
I recently found out I was finally selected to be promoted to Captain. It is a year (heck two years to be exact) over-due, but that is my fault. In the Army National Guard, you are not automatically promoted like in the Regular Army. You have to be in a position that warrants a promotion to a higher rank and you have to submit a packet. My position, Battalion S3 Air, is a Captain position; however, I did not prepare and submit a packet on time for the promotion board. I "dragged my feet". It all goes back to when I was a traditional student at Georgia Southern University. I left my senior year (reason is another story) and did not complete my degree until several years later. If I had been more focused, I would have graduated on time with less stress in the years following. The good news is my time spent at Georgia Southern was not wasted. Aside from the good friends I made, I took what I learned in English, Math, Business, and Computer Programming and made a good career with IBM. The credits I earned stayed with me when I finally finished my Bachelor degree at Charter Oak State College in New Britain, Connecticut. That is right. My degree is from a College in the Northeast. A "Yankee" College. My loyalty is still with Georgia Southern, but I am proud to be an Alumni of Charter Oak State College. Now I have aired that out, back to my story of late promotion. I did not submit my promotion packet on time and had to wait a year to finally get promoted. It is an example of not doing a task on time. When you have a goal, it is more that declaring the goal, it is actually doing what is necessary to complete the goal. You must go on and tackle the tasks at hand for you do not know what the future will bring. I look at the posted picture and remind myself of that. There is nothing like the present to begin your journey. I still have six more weeks before the Federal Recognition Board grants my promotion and I can wear the rank. When that happens, I will have accomplished another goal to build on, not rest on.

Happy New Year

Where has 2005 gone? What happened in 2005? This is one year that has completly slipped by without me even knowing what is happening in the world. Yeah, I know what is happening in Iraq. I know more than I really want to. What I do not know is what were the top songs this past year? What were the top movies? What was happening at Jacksonville Beach? Why are my favorite places like First Street Grille and Kevin's closing? Who is dating who in Hollywood? I never though I would care, but for some reason, I do.

YEAR OF EMOTIONS
It is hard to explain what I have gone through this past year. The only memories I have are about the various missions and operations we have done. Because this is a public forum, I can not explain the missions in detail and should not for obvious reasons. What I can do is describe the roller coaster ride of emotions our Task Force has gone through. It started with anxiety. We were not sure what Iraq would be like when we started our train-up at the begining of the year at Fort Stewart, GA. At that time, our main focus was to get through the training (including medical evaluations) and prepare to go to the National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, CA. After our training at NTC, we were ready to deploy to Iraq...at least we thought we were. Immediately in Iraq, we were thrown into the fire. Mission after mission, we faced the enemy. The enemy engaged us with IEDs, Small Arms Fire (SAF), mortars, rockets, and RPGs. All of this within the first two weeks. In return, we took the fight to them. We captured many insurgents and conducted several Civil Military Operations (CMO). We cried over fallen soldiers and we smiled after helping local children. The mission near Baghdad was an exhausting one. I personally lost 12 lbs from the heat and bad eating and sleeping patterns. Operational wise, we accomplished something that was incredible in my eyes. We basically converted a traditional Mechanized Infantry Battalion into a Air Assault unit. Not to discredit the 101st Aiborne Division (Air Assault), for they are Air Assault experts, but we executed many air assaults / air mobile missions. We had too. It was the best way for us to take the fght to the enemy and minimize casualties. The capstone was Operation Devil Strike. It became the largest Air Assault operation in National Guard History. The entire Task Force along with Iraqi Army soldiers air assaulted on a target along the Euphrates River. After that, we continued with our steady state missions and a few other smaller air mobile raids until a Task Force from the 101st came to relieve us. That is when we moved south to assume another mission, Theater Security. The move was a nice break for the soldiers. It took a few weeks before we conducted a Relief In Place (RIP) with a National Guard Units from Texas. During those two weeks, soldiers were able to decompress and rest. They started working out hard at the gym and playing sports. It was truly a well deserved break for those few weeks.

STEADY STATE
Here I am now at an air base in southern Iraq. Our Task Force secures convoys to various locations throughout the Iraq Theater. There are risks involved, but not like up north near Baghdad. We went from Full Spectrum Combat Operations to "Road Warriors". It is all good though. Most of my time is spent on planning for our re-deployment...a plan I will stay up late doing any day. What a ride!

Hey, what is going on in the world today? Did I just hear that Angelina Jolie is pregnant with Brad Pitt's child?