Wool-E

Yall, please help settle a disagreement some of my fellow jumpin' buddies and co-workers are having...the Courtesy Flush...effective means of whisking away crap so ass to save other's olfactory senses? Or just a waste of water (b/c it doesn't do shit!) _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

Ok, if you could choose one super power to NOT have, what would it be? For example, my girlfriend thinks that: the ability to constantly know what time it is, would be the worst. Personally, I think always feeling like you have to take a massive dump but never being able to, is the worst. Still, some of the ancients (or whomever!) would say immortality is the worst (but that's too serious-sounding). So chime in...what's the world's worst super power? _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

My all time favorite TV show was an old-school TV game show called Press Your Luck. NO WHAMMY NO WHAMMY NO WHAMMY STOP! _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

If Self-Control is the virtuous summit between the two abysses of rage and apathy, then you reacted virtuously (or excellently, since a virtue is a capacity for human excellence). Sooooo, good job! I try to view my pet peeves and social "pisser-off'ers" as an opportunity to develop my character. I think most people would either tell the wretch "what for", or they'd desire to tell him "what for" but never act on it out of cowardice. I think the trick is to do neither and concentrate, instead, on mastering the emotions, rather than being their slave. How, you say? Start by faking it, be polite. Faking patience leads to patience. The same is true for at least most, if not all, other virtues. Politeness leads to morality. But morality is only an interim step. Find out what the third and final step is...FOR $19.99 AT YOUR NEAREST BARNES AND NOBLE. SUUUUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY! Seriously though, a cat named Comte-Sponville is the philosopher / author that figured that out. And his book is great (despite it's rather lame title): A Small Treatisie on the Great Virtues. _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

Ok, admittedly this is presumptuous, but are we all not sick and tired of the Tom Petty song "Freefallin'"? Some jumpin' buddies of mine loathe the song all together, and I'm sure many others just dispise it on videos and probably some still like / love it! Don't get me wrong, it's a great song and kudos to Tom Petty; it's just, as a skydiver, I burnt out on it long ago. Matter of fact, I was once at Z-hill's new year's shindig and they had a DJ that played freefallin and he got boo'ed! If you're just starting out skydiving, chances are, you still love the song and get inspired when you hear it on the way to the dropzone. But you'll probably find after hearing it on countless skydiving videos (especially tandems), you'll tire of it, then begin to curse the cacophonous din...ok, well, it might not come to that exactly. BUT, my question is, for those out there that feel as I do about "Freefallin", what about other Tom Petty songs? In general and for skydiving videos. Learning to Fly, Into the Great Wide Open... Do these songs still turn you on, or has the ad infinitum "And I'm freeeeeee...freee-falliinnn'" broke your heart (get it?!) _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

Hello Ladyskydiver and GRE student, It looks like you've gotten some really good advice here, but let me share a few broad-topic things as a veteran Kaplan Test Prep SAT / GRE / MCAT Instructor and as a Industrial Engineer. Having dragged out my IE degree to six painful years of partying and having fun, VA Tech has taught me to seek exactness..you know, quadratic formula and 4 decimal places and significant figures and bla bla bla. But that kind of precision is a curse rather than a blessing when it comes to standardized testing (especially the GRE). So, tip #1: Compare, Don't Calculate. Your goal is to get to the correct answer (A,B,C,D, or E). NOT to figure out what 5SQRT(3) + SQRT(27) is. You just dont have time. FYI, your avg. time per question is going to be about 45 sec to 1 min (less on the analogies). SOOOOOO, you don't have a calculator, and you dont have time to use the quadratic formula. So let's make it easy on ourselves... 5SQRT(3) is slightly less than 5SQRT(4) AND SQRT(27) is slightly more than SQRT(25)...so the correct answer is approximately 5SQRT(4) + SQRT(25) => 5 x 2 + 5 => approx. 15. Now, look at the answer choices...see anything close? You can at least eliminate 2 or 3 answer choices at this point and and so take a guess at the remaining choices. Always guess on every question ON THE GRE, since there is no wrong answer penalty on the GRE. The SAT is an exception since there is a wrong answer penalty that will statistically nullify your "guess rights". Compare, Don't Calculate...this is especially true for quantitative comparisons. Tip #2..."Backsolve". Have variables in the question stem (the "problem statement" or whatever you want to call it) and numbers in the answer choices? Plug the answer choices in to see what works...start with B or D. And work up or down accordingly (the answers will always be arranged sequentially highest to lowest or vice versa). You will never have to work more than two. For example: x squared + 5 squared = 13 squared. X is... A 2 B 5 C 10 D 12 E 13 Let's start with B.... 5^2 + 5^2 = 13^2? STOP...there's no way that's right, it's way too small...no need to do the math! So we automatically know that B AND A are not correct, since A is smaller than B. Let's skip down to D... 12^2 + 5^2 = 13^2? 144 + 25 = 169? Yes! Select answer choice D and move on! See, here, it happened to be choice D, BUT, if choice D was too small, it would HAVE to be choice E, we would choose E and move on w/out doing any math at all. If D was too big, we know it's not B or A, it must be C, so choose C and move on...no math required! Get it? Backsolving works well for those pesky word problems too! Tip #3: Pick Numbers. Backsolving works great any time you have numbers in the answer choices. But what happens when you have variables in the answer choices. No worries....pick numbers. Just pick 'em out of the blue and plug them into the problem and answer choices, looking for a "match". For example... (x + y)^2 = A x^2 + y^2 B x^2 + 2xy + y^2 C x^2 - 2xy + y^2 D 2x + 2y E 4x^2 My favorite number is 25414 (my D-license no.), but let's not use that, it's not convenient. Let's choose 2 and 3. sooo, plugging into the question stem, we have (2 + 3)^2 = 5^2 = 25. now which answer choice matches that? A 2^2 + 3^2 = 4 + 9 = NOT 25 (i didnt spend time finding out exactly what it was) B 2^2 + 2*2*3 + 3^2 = 4 + 12 + 9 = 25 YAY! It's worth noting now that there's one and only one right answer...but it's possible to choose numbers that yield, what?, two seemingly correct answers. if that happens, if you have time, choose different numbers. if you dont, eliminate the ones that dont "match" and guess. Tip #4...QC's (Quantitative Comparissons). Know b/f the test the options...answer choice A means column A is greater than column B. answer choice B is vice versa. answer choice C is the columns are equal. and answer choice D means THERE IS MORE THAN ONE RELATIONSHIP B/W THE TWO COLUMNS! it does not mean, "i dont know," or "no solution." if you pick one set of numbers (a very valuable tool for QC's is picking numbers), and A is larger, but you pick another set of numbers and B is larger, then bingo, your answer is D. with QC's, try to "prove" choice D every time. Pick negative numbers, fractions, zero, one, and regular positive numbers. Example... Column A Column B x^2 x well, if i pick 1, the columns are equal, but if i pick 2 then column a is larger. so the answer is choice D...catcha' my drift? well...i guess i should stop now...but there's tons more of tricks and secret stuff out there. if you can afford it, a Kaplan course is a good investment in your future careers goals. what ive covered here is only the tip of the iceburg...it's like getting trained just the portion of the first jump course that deals with how to handle a line over; certainly not enough 411 to get you through the awesome mals...but a good start. if you dont have the bling for a kaplan course, then the $20 self-prep book and some good old fashion gumption will give you a leg up on your competition. check out www.kaptest.com for center locations and more. PLUS, they'll let you take a scored practice test FOR FREE if you just go by the nearest Kaplan Test Prep center...no annoying phone calls, no junk mail / email, no strings attached. The computer will tell you your strengths and opportunity areas also. So, if you can afford it, i highly recommend the course. Closing comments: A.) the GRE is computer adaptive, which means you start at a baseline score and work up or down in a "probability tree" or NBA bracket-like fashion. therefore, it's especially important to get those first few questions right to get you going in the right direction (upwards! to the higher scores!). so spend more time on the first few questions to make sure they're right. B.) the questions get progressively harder (or easier) as you go. as you move up the "probability tree" the questions will get harder. if you're moving down it, they'll seem easier. many students get discourages b/c they get to the end and feel they haven't done well b/c they weren't confident b/c the questions were hard...but that's good! if you get to the end and get questions like 2 + 2 = ? then it might not be a bad idea to dismiss that test instead of sending it to your first and second choice schools. C.) if you find yourself spending forever on a question, you're not doing it the easiest way, that's for sure...re-evaluate your method. D.) leave nothing blank on the GRE..answer everything (it's ok to skip it, just make sure you get back to it). E.) last one...the GRE is a REASONING test...NOT a math / vocab test. you're expected to have some math skills, but you're not expected to be a mathematician by any means. F.) sorry, last one for real...learn squares 1 through 15 (1^2, 2^2,..., 15^2). learn the common pythagorean triples: 3-4-5 (d'oh..sorry i forget the other two) and look for multiples of them (6-8-10)). study vocabulary...the GRE LOVES secondary definitions of words and "oddballs" like proscribe (to condemn) and virulent (virus-like...NOT "healthy and strong"). most importantly, the GRE is an opportunity for you to show the schools you're interested in just how good you really are. you're more than what your application shows...dazzle them with your GRE score as well. avoid viewing this test as an obstacle to your admittance...see it, instead, as an opportunity! Blue Skies! _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

My first paid tandem went well...and that following Tuesday my butt cheeks finally unclinched. I guess I'm just a worry wort. BUT, on my fifth and final evaluation jump, you know, the one right before you're cleared to start taking up-jumpers..you know, the hardcore one (at least for Vector) where they make you leave unstable, go drogueless for awhile, do some turns and then you can throw the drogue? I had a lineover (which was also my first malfunction) on that one. Fortunately, it was windy as hell and we had a great stand-up landing...the best one I'd had since, well, 4 jumps earlier when you jump that thing by yourself. Man, that first one...I shoulda' took a gameboy or a chicken dinner or a deck of cards or something...damn that was a boring and long canopy ride! At least it was February in PA, so the stinging cold took my mind off of the monotony of the canopy ride. It built character though....so I shouldn't complain,,, _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

Don't worry about your math skills...I'm an engineer and can do algebra, but paying bills and buying stuff I'm apparenlty not so good at. It doesn't seeeeeem hard, but damn if it isn't! For example, (money i make) - (money i spend) > or = 0. Seems pretty simple right? But despite that, I keep coming up with an equation like this... (money i make) - (money i spend) + "was that $27.66 downtown last night or $66.27?" = ??? + magic. and by magic i of course mean, "credit card debt". but i can do calculus! oh well, if i die tomorrow, look at all the free shit i got! disclaimer: not a good philosophy to live by...i've heard it said, "The borrower is always servant to the lender"...so Visa / Direct Loan, you would like your ass wiped with quilted or 2-ply? Don't Be Fooled by the Rocks that I got, I'm still, I'm still Woolly from the BlockQuote _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!

To improve efficiency at your DZ operation, it's conceptually simple: eliminate waste. See a group of students standing around doing nothing? That's waste (you're wasting your customers' time). Does your DZ make students walk all over the dropzone to fill out paperwork, get trained, gear up, watch the video, etc.? That's waste! See your instructors / packers / manifestors / etc. sitting around doing nothing? (cringe) that's waste! In the babe-magnet field of industrial engineering, the first scenario is an example of "Lead Time", the second is an example of travel time and the third is an example of "Idle" time. All of these are, of course, non-value-added waste. But that's just the tip of the iceburg, all dropzones, no matter how efficient they appear, have waste. There is always room for continuous improvement...the hard part is finding the waste! But for starters, variation creates waste. "Getting the ball between the uprights" as far as tolerances go is not good enough. "But Woolly, why? If it meets specification it meets specification, right?" Not exactly….if you miss low, you're continuously providing a sub-par product / service and your customers will catch on to that. If you miss high, you're spending more money / time on the product than you need to...waste. So eliminating variation will eliminate waste. SO WTF, HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO SKYDIVING?! Begin with standardization. Does your dropzone have a standard for teaching? If you think you do, watch your instructors. Does each TM (or AFF I / SL I / IAD I for that matter) each exactly the same stuff in exactly the same sequence? Write Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's) for the different work tasks at your operation and make the instructors follow the SOP. You're not robbing the instructor of their soul, they can be charismatic and hit on the chicas while they teach by the SOP. Do packer's follow an SOP? (hopefully the manufacturer's instructions!!!). Ok, once you get SOP's typed up, they should be easily accessable to the people doing the work (laminate them and hang them in the hanger, mock up, etc.). Then focus on getting your resources where you need them at the exact time you need them. You can start by only scheduling pilots / TM's / AFF I's / etc. when you need them. Start keeping historical data on your no. of students (your demand) if you dont already do so in order to forecast your student load for any given day. You can bet your ass it's going to be seasonal. So crunch your numbers in Excel or check out a seasonal forecasting model online or in a production planning book. Consider all your resources, not just the human ones. For example, the student should get a jumpsuit / helmet exactly when it is needed...how you manage that is an individual dropzone effort. Your customers are your "product" in a service industry such as skydiving. And any IE will tell you inventory is bad…you want your customers there right when they are supposed to be. So rather than teach 2 classes all day and cramming all your students into one of the two (here your objective is: minimize no. of classes taught), teach one class every half hour, hour, 2 hours, etc depending on your contraints. For a 182 DZ, your main constraint is probably airplane capacity...so you should only schedule 2 students (assume no video) every complete cycle time (if it takes the plane 30 min to get to 10,000ft, and another 30 min to train, paperwork, etc. then you should schedule two students per hour). Next, smooth out your system by eliminating bottlenecks. Don't worry, you cant eliminate all the bottlenecks, you can only move them around and make them less of a problem. Where are the bottlenecks? Look for your inventory to tell you that…inventory will pile up at a bottleneck. See a bunch of students waiting for paperwork, there's your bottleneck (remember, students are you inventory). Students waiting on the ground b/c a rig's not packed, packing is your bottleneck. It'd be nice to see professional DZ's implement IE tools to improve their dropzone in order to increase customer satisfaction and maximze dropzone profits. The student's will be happy they don’t have to wait, instructors will be happy that they're staying busy and making money, and the dropzone will be happy b/c it's eliminating waste and maximizing profit...so they can put that plastic ball pit like mcdonalds has in, or add the long-awaited hot tub on top of the hangar. Use caution though….treat your students and your employees like people…a lean system shouldn't equal a mean one! IE, F,S, A New Low of Dorkdom...Woolly _________________________________________ It's impossible to build a foolproof parachute because the fools are so ingenious!