It looks like Davoud Taghawi Nejad has implemented my idea to use PyZMQ to parallelize SLAPP. His project, 0SLAPP, is on GitHub. While he hasn't updated the project in a while, he seems to be using 0SLAPP to support his economics research.

Swarm simulation, aka ABMS or agent based modelling and simulation extends discrete event simulation in that the entities in the simulation display more complex behaviour. The entities or agents in Swarm simulations act autonomously, interacting with each other and their environment via messages. This paradigm is logically parallel, but until recently the limited availability of parallel hardware has favored sequential implementations.

The Swarm simulation package is a useful tool with a good architecture and extensive documentation. It was implemented in Objective C and while there were plans to support parallel hardware, this has never been implemented. I believe the relative ease of understanding of Python programs, the large Python community, the "batteries included" standard library, and many useful third party packages will make it a productive choice for reimplementing the Swarm architecture and protocol for the parallel hardware and cloud computing that are becoming commonplace.

There are many Python tools which could be useful for implementing the Swarm protocol and architecture. I'm planning to implement messaging with PyZMQ. I'll probably use gevent for the scheduler event loop and light weight coroutines, but need to investigate it more thoroughly.

I'll use the classic Heatbugs and Mousetrap examples for test cases.

I've had a lot going on and fell out of the blogging habit. I had a knee replacement in early November and while I'm recovering nicely, rehab and work have taken most of my energy. I also submitted a proposal for a poster presentation at PyCon 2012 in Santa Clara next March on "Autonomic Computing with Python".

We had a nice Winterset snow which has lasted through Christmas. Season's Greetings!

I finnished my 2011 Scottish Heavy Athletics season at the Long's Peak Scottish/Irish Fistival in Estes Park, Colorado. Weather was perfect and the Masters group is a great bunch to throw with.

Drove up to Casper, Wyoming for the Labor Day weekend, leaving early enough Saturday to get there for a Corvette show. No photos, but lots of fine automobiles. Later attended a talk on "The Western Gunfighter, Man or Myth?" which was quite interesting. The speaker had a beautiful collection of period arms.

Sunday we paid a visit to Hell's Half Acre.

It was a nice relaxing weekend.

Had a nice ride today, loop including the Peak to Peak Highway.

I just finished the 40 day program, a la Dan John, hauling a 20 kg kettlebell along on our trip to Florida. This is what Dan calls the easy strength approach, pick 5 exercises covering major movement patterns, and do them for 40 consecutive workouts. Anticipating travel when I started and wanting to maintain strength and conditioning for the Highland Games, I chose Halo, Goblet Squat, Footwork Drills , Kettlebell Press, Lawnmowers, Kettlebell Snatch, and Ab Wheel. This seemed to have worked pretty well, but we'll see at the Rock Mountain Highland Games.

Following this, I'm beginning another easy strength like program which will compliment my throwing and prepare me for the Tactical Strength Challenge in September after I've completed my Highland Games season. This one will be adapted from Josh Hillis' "Sucker Punch Inspired" workout by substituting kettlebell snatches for the push press and tweaking the rest intervals a bit. He uses up to 5 minutes, but I don't have the time or patience to do that in training.

Week A

Monday: Deadlifts “Easy” Day 5 x 5, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) 2 x 1:00 Hi Low Carry, 2 x 1:00 Farmer Walk, (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Tuesday: Pullups 5 x 3-5 (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) Goblet Squats 5 x 5-20 (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Wednesday: Pushups 3 x 5-10 (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) Kettlebell Snatch 3 x 5-10, (rest 2-3 minutes between sets) 2 x 1:00 Farmer’s Walk (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Thursday: Deadlifts “Heavy” Day, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets)

Friday: Pullups 5 x 3-5 and, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) Goblet Squats 5 x 5-20 (rest 1 minute between sets) 2 x 1:00 High/Low Carry (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Saturday: Off

Sunday: Off

Week B

Monday: Deadlifts “Easy” Day 5 x 5 (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) 2 x 1:00 Hi Low Carry, 2 x 1:00 Farmer Walk (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Tuesday: Pushups 5 x 5-10, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) Kettlebell Snatches 3 x 5-10, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) 2 x 1:00 Farmer’s Walk (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Wednesday: Pullups 5 x 3-5 (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) Goblet Squats 5 x 5-20 (rest 1 minute between sets) 2 x 1:00 High/Low Carry (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Thursday: Deadlifts “Heavy” Day (rest 1-3 minutes between sets)

Friday: Pushups 3 x 5-10 (rest 1-3 minutes between sets), Kettlebell Snatches 3 x 5-10, (rest 1-3 minutes between sets) 2 x 1:00 Farmer’s Walk (rest 1 minute between sets) Kettlebell Swing Intervals

Saturday: Off

Sunday: Off

We drove from Colorado down to Alligator Point, Florida where we rented a beach house for the week. We had a relaxing time kayaking, walking on the beach, and generally enjoying the Redneck Riviera. This may be the quietest beach community in the country, we often had the beach to ourselves. The heat and humidity may have had something to do with that, but it was still nice.

Couldn't make the Lightning work for my knees, so I traded it for a Kawasaki Ninja 1000 yesterday. From the reviews, it promises both sportiness and comfort, and my test ride at Rocky Mountain Kawasaki seemed to confirm that.

I started the break in with a ride up Left Hand Canyon this morning. I spent a couple of hours standing before hand and it long engough to stress the knee so this was good test. My knee held up well and the Ninja was a delight in the canyons. The engine is a beast, pulling smoothly form 2000 RPM in 6th gear going up hill. I think it'll work for me.

I read the Declaration of Independence this morning for the first time in years. It's as meaningful today as it was at the signing 235 years ago. I think the second paragraph is key.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

It would be a good to read this every year to remind us where we come from. The United States is an idea that the whole world can share.

I just got back from SwarmFest 2011, a conference on agent based simulation. Attendance was down because of the weak economy, but the talks were interesting and discussion lively I got helpful feedback on my presentation "Parallelizing SLAPP with 0MQ". SLAPP, the Swarm Like Agent Protocol in Python, is a project to bridge the gap between the power of the orginal Swarm simulation package and easier to use systems like NetLogo. I had some productive discussion with Pietro Terna, the originator of SLAPP, and his colleague Mateo Morini on SLAPP development.

Among the many thoughts on Memorial Day, this one stuck out for me.

About such patriots, Gen. George S. Patton was right: "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived."

Remember to give thanks.

Kirk Sorenson has left his position as Chief Nuclear Scientist at Teledyne Brown to found Flibe Energy to commercialize liquid-fluoride thorium reactors (LFTR). This is good news for a world economy stressed by uncertain and increasingly expensive hydrocarbon fuel supplies. Thorium is more plentiful and produces less waste than uranium 235. The LFTR process can efficiently desalinize water and produce medical isotopes as by products. Best of luck for this endeavour.

When I heard the Falcon Heavy announcement, it struck me that it would be a great enabler for a Mars expedition. Robert Zubrin has run the numbers and figures that three Falcon Heavy launches could support his Mars Direct mission profile. This implies that an expedition could be mounted in the next few years for less than the cost of a single Space Shuttle launch.

In Elon Musk's announcement of the Falcon Heavy, he expressed confidence that SpaceX could send a human team to Mars in a decade or two. The Dragon capsule will be able to use it's launch abort system as a retro-rocket to make precision landings. So sign me up to ride a Dragon to Mars.

The Kona project is building an open source implementation of the K programming language. I find K interesting, but haven't used it much because of it's limited availability.

Just watched Braveheart for inspiration. From the screenplay:

All men die. Not all men really live.

Freedom!

I'm stoked for the the Highland Games season and coming challenges.

Though I've had a little practice over the winter, my Highland Games season really began today. I attended a throwing clinic sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Scottish Athletes. It was taught by Sean Betz, the 2008 Professional Highland Games World Champion. He's a good coach as well as a top thrower. I've been a little unhappy with life lately, and this was good therapy.