signalnoise

So, I was gone for a while because my computer was out of commission. I had a bit of screen flicker, and had an inverter replaced. I brought my (now dirty) MacBook ... to discover that now the CD drive won't read music CDs. I guess it has to go *back* to the Apple Store this weekend.

In the meantime, I also visited Las Vegas for the Western Political Science Association conference. I presented a paper ("Congress and the Railroads: The 1850 Illinois Central Land Grant and American Sectionalism"), and it was generally well received. I got some great feedback. The best/worst of it was that my analysis of roll call votes doesn't so much prove my point. My theory is rich, my data is weak. I'm considering moving in a game theoretic direction, which is something I'd have to learn (there's a class in the fall). We shall see.

Otherwise, Vegas was Vegas. I was at the Riviera, which is at the slightly cheaper, skeezey end of the Strip. I hung out with some friends. My friend M and her friend M went to Paris, for the buffet, and it was tasty. M and M were decked out, so I felt totally bitching, hanging out with my hot friends. But otherwise, it was another academic conference - lots of drinking and lots of works in progress.