Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame October 23, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Sports.Tags: basketball, museums, trips
2 comments
I recently visited the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield. The museum features a variety of exhibits that convey the wonders and nuances of basketball to the general public.
Here are ten nuggets that I gleaned from my time at the museum.
1. The inventor of basketball, Dr. James Naismith, did not believe in the benefits of actually playing the game. Instead, Naismith felt that a basketball player should strive towards “muscular Christianity”; this description was famously applied to Eric Liddell in Chariots of Fire. Naismith wanted players to focus on improving their physical fitness and learning the value of self-sacrifice via rigorous individual and team-oriented practice sessions.
2. Like other sports and games, basketball has had many archaic rules that seem a bit silly in retrospect. Some of these rules that stood out to me include the following: a) coaches could not coach their teams during games, b) coaches could not speak to their players during timeouts, and c) womens’ teams were allowed to have six players at a time on the court.
3. Before Stephen Curry, Austin Daye, and Pete Maravich, there was Christian Steinmetz. Steinmetz was college basketball’s first great scorer and became the first collegian to top 1000 points at the end of his career. Though he stood just 5-9 and weighed 137 pounds, he dominated games for the Wisconsin Badgers during an era when most players had trouble scoring.
4. Before Earl Boykins, Spud Webb and Muggsy Bogues, there was Barney Sedran. Sedran was the first great “midget” basketball star and became the shortest player ever to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, standing 5-4. As expected, he was a lights-out shooter, and he put up spectacular stats as a barnstorming pro.
5. The New York Celtics enjoyed an incredible run of success as one of basketball’s first great barnstorming teams. The Celtics pioneered the practice of signing star players to lucrative individual contracts; this allowed them to retain the services of stalwarts including Joe Lapchick and Dutch Dehnert. They also invented the zone defense and used it to great effect against bamboozled opponents.
6. The results of the NIT used to carry more weight than those of the NCAA Tournament when it came to determining the nation’s best college team; many elite Eastern teams would opt for the NIT as they preferred to play under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden. Perhaps the best example of this came in 1939, when the “Big Dance” concluded with Oregon defeating Ohio State 46-33. The NIT, though, saw a 24-0 Long Island team led by Clair Bee defeat Loyola in the finals.
7. John McLendon was the first great black basketball coach and actually learned the game from Naismith during his undergraduate days at Kansas. McLendon believed that his teams should adhere to the principle of “activity”; he pioneered the fast-break offense and favored an aggressive in-your-face approach on defense. These innovations allowed him to become the first coach to win three consecutive collegiate titles while he was at Tennessee State.
8. Most basketball fans would know John Wooden for winning ten national titles at UCLA and coaching Bruin greats such as Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton. Wooden, though, was also a skilled strategist; for example, he devised the 2-2-1 zone press that harassed opponents as they attempted to bring the ball past the mid-court line. This full-court press tactic undoubtedly inspired Rick Pitino’s matchup press and Nolan Richardson’s 40 Minutes of Hell.
9. Bob Knight is famous for, among other things, his motion offense. In the motion offense, there are no set plays; the players utilize the tactics of crisp passing, sharp cutting and well-timed screening to set up good shot opportunities against any defense that is thrown at them. Knight intended that dribbling be kept to a minimum in the motion offense; perhaps that was due to the influence of Naismith, who did not include dribbling in his original thirteen rules of basketball.
10. Sergey Belov of the USSR was arguably the greatest international basketball player of all-time. Belov was the best player on the Soviet side that racked up several international honors during the 1960s and ’70s, including four European Championship and two World Championship gold medals. Unfortunately, he is best known, at least among American basketball junkies, for being on the Soviet team that defeated the USA squad in controversial fashion at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.
From my perspective, the museum is really a basketball lover’s paradise, and one could spend hours browsing its various exhibits and mining hidden gems from the presented material. I enjoyed seeing artifacts such as the game balls for John Thompson’s 500th career victory, a pair of shoes worn by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the high school jersey of LeBron James. I also thought it was neat that the museum had a large basketball court on the ground floor that even featured a peach basket; many kids took the opportunity to shoot jumpers and layups on this court. In addition, the museum’s third floor features a panoramic display of photographs of the Hall of Fame inductees, which was quite awe-inspiring.
In terms of drawbacks, some of the interactive exhibits were not working. I also felt that the museum should have included some material on the thriving streetball culture, as that has played a major role in the development of modern basketball (for better or worse).
Overall I enjoyed my time at the museum and I learned a lot. Also, I was told by one of the museum’s staffers that 80% of its collection is currently in storage; the exhibits are rotated every 3 months, so I would definitely be interested in a return visit at some point.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston October 13, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Arts.Tags: Arts, museums, trips
add a comment
I recently visited the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The museum features a variety of exhibits that present artistic treasures to the general public.
Here are ten nuggets that I gleaned from my time at the museum.
1. John Singer Sargent was commissioned to decorate the museum’s Shapiro Rotunda. Sargent originally wanted a set of reliefs to serve as the centerpiece of his project; after observing the amount of ambient light in the rotunda, he changed his mind and had the reliefs serve as embellishments of several paintings depicting various scenes from world mythology.
2. A central aspect of tribal life in Oceania involved the sculpting of figurines for special occasions, including coming-of-age ceremonies and funerals. Such figurines were often used to represent tribal ancestors and were designed to invoke the ancestors’ protection and blessings for a given tribe. The figurines would be handed down from one generation to the next and supposedly acquired power, or mana as time passed.
3. A central aspect of tribal life in Africa involved the sculpting of female figurines. Such figurines were often crafted to display an image of fecundity and strength; this was accomplished via providing the figurines with exaggerated reproductive organs and elaborate coiffures. Tribes that sculpted these figurines hoped that they would yield both a population boom and a good harvest in the coming year.
4. Many of the prominent 20th-century Mexican muralists and artists were politically active and agitated for a variety of causes. One of these artists, Leopoldo Mendez, poked fun at the great Diego Rivera and his support of the exiled Soviet leader Leon Trotsky with a humorous painting that caricatured Rivera and Trotsky as skeletons.
5. Persian and Ottoman art was influenced by extensive trade with China during the Ming Dynasty. For example, artists during the time of the Safavid Empire would create beautiful blue-white cups and bowls that were based on porcelain items from China. The Safavid-era artists would then add their distinctive touches to their cups and bowls, such as selected verses from the Koran and depictions of flora native to the Middle East.
6. Animals can often be found in Indian art depicting scenes from Hindu mythology; these animals are highly symbolic. For example, cows are highly esteemed in India, as they project an image of serenity and assiduity. This is best exemplified by the white bull Nandi, which can be found in various paintings of the god Shiva and his consort, Parvati. On the other hand, water buffaloes do not enjoy the same degree of admiration and respect; this is best exemplified by paintings that depict the goddess Durga and her victory over a demon that hid in the body of a water buffalo.
7. Artists who produced early Buddhist works generally refrained from showing the Buddha himself in their sculptures and paintings. To indicate the Buddha’s presence in their works, they employed symbols including his footprints, a throne that he was supposed to have occupied, and the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha is said to have achieved enlightenment.
8. The Arts and Crafts Movement was a reaction to the “creative stifling” and “dehumanizing effects” of the Industrial Revolution. Two architect brothers, Charles and Henry Greene, were inspired by the movement to design houses and furniture that were both functional and aesthetically pleasing. For example, the Greenes would carefully select woods such as Honduran mahogany for items such as tables and chairs, aiming to use their grain patterns and aromas to create a pleasant atmosphere for their clients.
9. Like Persian and Ottoman art, Vietnamese art drew inspiration from China. To provide a distinctly Vietnamese touch to their works of art, local craftsmen would use soft white clay that could only be found in the Red River region near Hanoi. These craftsmen would also use elephant symbols in their works, as elephants were still prevalent in northern Vietnam during the Ly and Tran Dynasties after having become extinct in China.
10. One of Japan’s major art forms, ukiyo-e, was actually a natural venue for various artists to display a humorous bent. In fact, many ukiyo-e works would reference the Heian period in a nostalgic manner while simultaneously poking fun at it. For example, some ukiyo-e artists would depict scenes from Lady Murasaki’s famous novel The Tale of Genji, but they would add humorous twists by altering key plot details in their prints.
From my perspective, the museum is really an art lover’s paradise, and one could spend hours browsing its various exhibits and learning about art from a plethora of perspectives. I thought it was quite neat that the Oceania, Africa and Asia section was near the entrance on the ground floor; I initially wandered into that section from the Shapiro Rotunda, and I was exposed to an art genre with which I was only vaguely familiar.
In terms of drawbacks, as alluded to above, the museum is quite expansive, which makes it difficult to explore in its entirety during a one-day visit. Note that the museum is only open from 10 a.m. until 4:45 p.m. on Saturdays. Also, as expected, the food options at the museum were rather pricey.
Overall I enjoyed my time at the museum and I learned a lot, though I would like to return at some point to browse the exhibits that I missed.
Relay Subset Selection in Wireless Networks Using Partial Decode-and-Forward Transmission October 7, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Research.Tags: journal paper, review
add a comment
My third journal paper appeared in the IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology last February. You can find a pre-print on arXiv here.
Here are my thoughts on this paper’s strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths:In this paper, we used a simple theoretical model to obtain some practical insights. Specifically, we considered the relay selection problem given that all of the candidate relays employ a partial decode-and-forward strategy. Assuming that the network is static, we showed that the ergodic rate can be maximized by placing all of the candidate relays at a single point. This is intuitively satisfying, as intelligent node placement is essential when initially setting up a wireless network. Also, we were able to use neat mathematical tools such as diversity gain and generalized diversity gain to characterize the performance of relay selection under this partial decode-and-forward framework.
Weaknesses:Unfortunately, neat theoretical models cannot be used to explain all of the practical scenarios that can be realized. In particular, our model only considered the performance impact of path loss, and so lognormal shadowing was not taken into account. Placing a candidate relay node at the ergodic rate-maximizing point appears to be a good strategy, but what if a large building blocks the line-of-sight path between the candidate relay and the intended destination? Also, as far as I can tell, partial decode-and-forward is not employed in either the IEEE 802.16j or the 3GPP LTE-Advanced standards, which limits the practical scope of our work.
This was my second accepted IEEE journal paper, which was another important milestone in my graduate school career. I should also note that the review process for Trans VT is excellent; in particular, this paper was initially submitted in November 2007, and the final acceptance notice was issued in June 2008. This implies that authors seeking a fast turnaround time for their papers should consider submitting to Trans VT. Much of the credit for the smoothness of the review process should go to Weihua Zhuang, who is the Editor-in-Chief of the Transactions.
Museum of Science, Boston August 25, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Science.Tags: museums, Science, trips
add a comment
I recently visited the Museum of Science in Boston. The museum features a variety of exhibits that present the marvels and wonders of science to the general public.
Here are ten nuggets that I gleaned from my time at the museum.
1. Cormorants and seagulls are often at odds as they carve out a shared existence along the New England coast. In fact, seagulls enjoy swooping down upon a mother cormorant’s nest and stealing her eggs for food.
2. Beavers are capable of altering an entire ecosystem via their diligent dam-building endeavors. They also possess wide, flat tails that can be used to alert other beavers of impending danger; a “sentinel” beaver accomplishes this by slapping its tail against the water.
3. Deciduous forests can be found throughout Massachusetts, which helps to explain the local sentiment of “you can experience all four seasons here.” In contrast, conifers are more prevalent in New Hampshire and Vermont, which happen to lie in a tundra zone.
4. Our understanding of black holes is enhanced via data collection across a wide range of the electromagnetic spectrum. The Chandra X-Ray Observatory searches for the tell-tale X-rays that are emitted by black holes. Also, the Hubble Space Telescope scans the visible portion of the spectrum, hunting for stars in the vicinity of a black hole. In addition, the Spitzer Space Telescope scans the infrared portion of the spectrum, enabling it to observe regions of star formation in the clouds of gas and dust that typically surround black holes. Combining images from all three sources provides a comprehensive picture of a black hole and its environs.
5. Contrary to popular belief, black holes do not serve as powerful vacuums, sucking up and destroying all of the matter within an arbitrary radius. The “critical” distance for vacuum-like behavior is actually the Schwarzschild radius which, in some sense, can be thought of as the “diameter” of a black hole.
6. One statement of Minkowski’s Theorem is as follows: “consider an infinite two-dimensional lattice where adjacent points are separated by a unit distance. Also, consider a convex region that is centered at one of these lattice points. If this convex region has area greater than 4, it contains at least three of the lattice points.” This is a neat example of a simple, yet elegant mathematical truism.
7. The Galton machine is a fascinating mathematical device. In this contraption, a collection of balls is released into a set of wells; using a clever arrangement of pins between the ball release point and the wells, the flight of the balls can be altered to allow the distribution of balls in the wells to follow the well-known normal distribution. The Galton machine highlights the importance of Gaussianity in all sorts of natural phenomena.
8. Dean Kamen, who is perhaps best known for inventing the Segway scooter, has designed a new device that should be a boon to developing nations. Known as the Slingshot, it purifies water via a cycle of steam formation and condensation. It also generates power via an ingenious device known as a Stirling engine.
9. Cladistics is a powerful method that has been used by scientists to map the evolution of various traits in dinosaurs. In particular, we now know that birds can be classified as dinosaurs, while pterosaurs are technically not dinosaurs; they lack the distinctive hole in their hip sockets that is present in all dinosaurs.
10. Nanotechnology relies on many fascinating natural phenomena for invaluable design insights. For example, cabbage leaves are quite remarkable in terms of their water-resistant and self-cleaning properties. A close examination of their surfaces reveals a network of raised bumps which inhibits water collection. As water drops onto this network of bumps, it rolls off, taking dirt particles with it.
The museum provides a welcome diversion for families who may be looking for ways to keep their children from succumbing to boredom during the long summer months. Exhibits such as the Cahners ComputerPlace challenge students with various hands-on puzzles such as the Tower of Hanoi problem. Visitors will have the treat of observing numerous children experiencing the joys of science and expressing genuine intellectual curiosity.
In terms of drawbacks, the museum is so expansive that it is difficult, if not impossible, to thoroughly browse all of its exhibits in a single day. Proper advance planning is necessary in order to get the most out of a single-day trip. Also, if you visit the museum by taking the T to the Science Park stop, you may be stuck on the wrong side of the Charles River Dam Bridge and have to wait for the bridge to lower before being able to approach the museum.
Overall I enjoyed my time at the museum and I learned a lot, though I would like to return at some point to browse the exhibits that I missed.
The Impact of Channel Feedback on Opportunistic Relay Selection for Hybrid-ARQ in Wireless Networks August 5, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Research.Tags: journal paper, review
add a comment
My second journal paper appeared in the IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology last March. You can find a pre-print on arXiv here.
Here are my thoughts on this paper’s strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths:In this paper, we studied a practical problem, namely that of relay selection in a wireless network, and obtained a near-practical solution to this problem. It should be stressed that rate-compatible punctured coding is an important element of industry standards such as IEEE 802.16e and 3GPP LTE. Also, a well-crafted comment from one of the paper’s anonymous reviewers motivated us to thoroughly revise Section 5.1; the results of the revision strengthened our belief in our solution’s near-practicality. In particular, we cited various parameters from the IEEE 802.11a standard to support our assertion that opportunistic relay selection would not significantly increase the level of signaling overhead in a wireless network.
Weaknesses:An inherent limitation to studying a practical problem is the resultant difficulty in obtaining meaningful, closed-form mathematical results. Mathematical elegance is a quality that is rarely attributed to hybrid-ARQ and convolutional coding; combining those two transmission strategies with opportunistic relay selection limited us to the relatively simple analytical results in Section 4. Also, I used an insufficient number of Monte Carlo trials to obtain the simulation results in Sections 5.2 and 5.3. This resulted in plots that would have greatly benefited from either the addition of error bars or additional test runs.
This was my first accepted IEEE journal paper, which was a nice milestone in my graduate school career. I also greatly enjoyed the paper revision process, as it was my first opportunity to mull over reviewer comments and determine how to address them. Formulating a coherent plan for a paper revision is often difficult, but it is well worth the time and effort; for example, I always enjoy reading well-written author responses to my comments whenever I serve as an anonymous reviewer.
JFK Presidential Library and Museum July 21, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in History.Tags: john f. kennedy, museums, trips
add a comment
I recently visited the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. The library and museum commemorate the life and legacy of our nation’s 35th President, John F. Kennedy.
Here are ten nuggets that I gleaned from my time at the museum.
1. Kennedy actually had a scholarly bent and was an ardent student of history, which spurred him to craft his Pulitzer Prize-winning work Profiles in Courage. I got the impression that had it not been for his brother Joe’s death during World War II, Kennedy would have either a) stayed out of politics or b) set his sights on a “non-Presidential” position.
2. Kennedy wanted to be Adlai Stevenson’s running mate for the 1956 presidential election, but he lost out to Estes Kefauver. This setback only served to further his quest for the Presidency. On a related note, I had never heard of Kefauver before my trip to the museum, so I need to plug some holes in my knowledge of 20th Century American history.
3. Much like Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, Kennedy’s sharp performances in his three debates with Richard Nixon help to allay any potential fears about his ability to lead the nation. I was disappointed that the “Kennedy-Nixon Debate” exhibit made no mention of Nixon’s five o’clock shadow, though.
4. Kennedy’s famed inaugural address went through numerous iterations before the final version was delivered on January 20, 1961. Biblical passages, including Romans 12:12 and Isaiah 58:6 appear in one of the greatest speeches in modern history.
5. The Alliance for Progress was established between the U.S. and Latin America during Kennedy’s administration, which was an obvious attempt to combat Fidel Castro’s regional objectives. This was just one of the many initiatives that could have been more successful had Kennedy been able to serve out his first term (and a second term was a real possibility at the time).
6. Kennedy was the first president to hold live press conferences. This was a groundbreaking development, as his predecessors had always been able to edit the transcripts of their press conferences before approving them for public release.
7. The First Lady was the epitome of classiness and style. I was able to watch part of her famous CBS television special where she led viewers on a tour of the White House. During the special, she calmly described her efforts to infuse the Red Room and the Green Room with a sense of history; for example, she placed various tables and chairs from the Monroe presidency in their original locations in these rooms.
8. The White House became a welcoming environment for the arts due to the influence of the First Lady. Several poets and musicians dined at the White House and edified the other guests with well-crafted after-dinner performances. I was able to read a thank-you letter from the noted violinist Isaac Stern to the President and the First Lady after he visited the White House.
9. I had read about Kennedy’s heroism during the PT-109 incident, but browsing that exhibit helped to refresh my memory. In particular, Kennedy was wounded in the collision with the Japanese warship that sunk the PT-109, but he ignored the pain and swam with a belt between his teeth to shore while assisting an injured comrade. He then wandered about before finding two Solomon Island natives, which eventually led to the rescue of his crew.
10. One of the enduring legacies of the Kennedy administration was increased awareness and funding for people suffering from mental retardation. This was a personal battle for Kennedy, as his sister Rosemary was mentally retarded. Large, overcrowded state-run mental institutions were closed as a result of this initiative, and smaller, community-oriented institutions became more prevalent.
The museum is fairly easy to tour, and it took me slightly under four hours to go through all of the exhibits; since I usually attempt to absorb as much information as possible during my museum visits, more casual visitors would probably need about 90 minutes to browse all of the exhibits. Also, its location is a fitting tribute to Kennedy’s life-long love of the seas, as it is surrounded by the Boston Harbor. In addition, I found the short documentary of the Cuban Missile Crisis to be quite delightful, as it captured the (worldwide) fear and tension that were rampant during those fateful days in October 1962.
In terms of drawbacks, the museum is apparently difficult to visit in the winter months; its glass walls do not provide adequate insulation to repel the harsh winds blowing off the Boston Harbor.
Overall I enjoyed my time at the museum and I learned a lot, which was the main purpose of my trip.
Minute Man National Historical Park June 8, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in History.Tags: revolutionary war
add a comment
I recently visited the Minute Man National Historical Park in Massachusetts. The park’s main theme is the Battle of Lexington and Concord, which was the first military engagement of the American Revolutionary War.
Here are ten nuggets that I gleaned from my time at the park.
1. The Battle Road landscape has changed significantly from the date of the battle (4/19/1775). The surrounding wetlands were cultivated for hay farming at that time, so the Battle Road that the British marched along was actually surrounded by copious amounts of open space. Now the wetlands offer a more hospitable environment for various species of birds and frogs.
2. I had never realized this, but the “no taxation without representation” rallying cry of the American colonists stemmed from the massive debt that the British had incurred during the French and Indian War. Thus, in some sense, one war triggered the onset of another.
3. The heavy financial duties that the British imposed on the colonists were exacerbated by the decline of farming as a viable livelihood in the colonies. As time passed, subdivision of arable land and declining soil fertility made it quite difficult for colonists to inherit viable farmland, which forced them to seek gainful employment in major cities.
4. Having a well-connected intelligence network is invaluable when preparing for any military engagement; this lesson has been recently driven home by news of the alleged Israeli spy network in Lebanon. In 1775, spies learned that the British were planning on seizing the Minute Man arsenal at Concord, which set Paul Revere off on his famous “Ride.”
5. Perhaps I had forgotten this from my U.S. history classes, but Paul Revere was actually captured on his famous “Ride” from Boston. A roving British patrol had been set up to prevent word of their impending raid from reaching Concord, and they intercepted Revere, William Dawes and Dr. Samuel Prescott. Luckily for the Minute Men, Dr. Prescott escaped and carried his timely news to Concord.
6. The British troops showed an amazing lack of discipline during the battle. They disobeyed direct orders from General Thomas Gage to the raid’s leader, Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith, by burning several buildings in Concord. Also, it has been firmly established that the British fired the first shot at the Old North Bridge; the Minute Men at the bridge had been instructed to hold their fire unless fired upon.
7. Revolutionary War weapons were notoriously inefficient. A well-trained musket-wielder could fire at most three shots per minute, and the flintlock muskets of that time were wildly inaccurate. This accounts for the relatively low number of British casualties along the Battle Road (when you consider the number of Minute Men that were sniping on them).
8. The colonists who lived along the Battle Road showed a great deal of concern for any wounded British soldiers who came across their paths, taking them into their homes and attempting to nurse them back to health. In these cases, they put aside their grievances against the British Crown and focused on helping their fellow man.
9. New Englanders showed (and continue to show) a great deal of ingenuity in terms of home construction. Many of the colonial-era homes that I saw during my trip had the same key features: slanted roofs (used to mitigate the potentially damaging effects of a heavy snowfall), low ceilings and well-designed fireplaces (both trapped heat inside the home). I suppose that harsh winters are the mother of necessity.
10. Intense close-quarter combat was not absent from this engagement. In one notable incident, Minute Man James Hayward of Acton encountered a Redcoat who told him, “you are a dead man.” Hayward replied, “and so are you” before both men shot each other to death.
The Visitor Center in Lincoln featured a neat presentation narrated by Amos Doolittle, which, in some ways, immersed the audience in the events of that fateful day in 1775. The Battle Road is 5 miles long and is excellent for jogging, biking and hiking.
In terms of drawbacks, I would say that having two visitor centers (the second was at the Old North Bridge) could cause some confusion in terms of how to “properly” traverse the trail. The chronological approach, if you wanted to retrace the steps of the British during the battle, would be to 1) go to the visitor center in Lincoln, see the exhibits there and watch the Doolittle-narrated presentation, 2) drive to the visitor center at the Old North Bridge and see the bridge itself, and 3) drive to Merriam’s Corner and walk along the trail to Fiske Hill. Since the trail doesn’t loop around, though, you have to walk a total of 10 miles…
Overall I enjoyed my time at the park and I learned a lot, which was the main purpose of my trip.
Rate Bounds for MIMO Relay Channels May 25, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Research.Tags: journal paper, review
add a comment
My first journal paper appeared in the Journal of Communications and Networks last June. You can find a pre-print on arXiv here.
I thought that I would list some of this paper’s strengths and weaknesses, which may provide some guidance for researchers in the area of wireless communications.
Strengths:We tackled an interesting open problem, which entailed determining the capacity of the full-duplex MIMO relay channel. The end result was a nice technical contribution, where we proposed two partial source-relay cooperation strategies that improved upon a previously proposed lower bound. An inherent advantage in performing information-theoretic research is that reviewers have to be more clever when attempting to reject your submissions, assuming that the stated results are correct. Also, Section 5 illustrates how intuition for technical contributions can be obtained via a few well-thought-out simulation studies.
Weaknesses:An inherent drawback of performing information-theoretic research is that a relatively high bar must be cleared in order to actually obtain the desired results. This issue manifested itself when 1) I made a technical error in the conference version of this paper and 2) I glossed over several critical details in the proofs of our results, which put a crimp in the review process. In retrospect, I should have obtained a more solid grasp of multiuser information theory before tackling this open problem. We were also unable to obtain a sharper outer bound, which limited our options for journal submission; for example, our paper would have been rejected by the IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.
This paper, in some sense, signaled my entry into the world of academia. On a side note, I would like to commend the JCN publication staff, as they did a superb job throughout the paper review and editing process. For interested researchers, the JCN does have the occasional compelling special issue; their guest editors also tend to be fairly well-known in their respective sub-fields.
Reasonable Expectations for Star Hoops Recruits – Part IV April 19, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Sports.add a comment
My previous post provided a synopsis of the college basketball careers of various members of the class of 2003.
This post focuses on players from the class of 2004. This class was perhaps best known for featuring a slew of preps-to-pros.
Again, many thanks to Statsheet for making this post possible.
Malik Hairston – Hairston was actually the only player on my 2004 First Team to play college basketball. He was a fine scorer, putting up 14.1 ppg, and rebounded well for a wing guard, putting up 5.1 rpg. His shooting needed some work, though, as he hit just 39.5% of his 3s and only 64.2% of his free throws. Oregon went 76-53 during his four years in Eugene, including making a trip to the Elite Eight in 2007.
Joe Crawford – somehow Crawford endured four years of the unique pressures that come with being a Kentucky Wildcat. As a testament to his work ethic, he improved his scoring and shooting over the course of his career, ending up with marks of 11.3 ppg and 43.7 fg%. Most of his other stats were fairly pedestrian, though, and Kentucky “only” went 90-45. The high point of Crawford’s career was a run to the Elite Eight in 2005 that ended with a loss to Michigan State.
Rudy Gay – Gay had a nice two-year run at Connecticut, though his detractors will always question his will to win during his time in Storrs. He put up solid stats, including marks of 13.6 ppg, 1.7 bpg and 1.3 spg. The Huskies went 53-12 and made it to the Elite Eight in 2006, losing to George Mason in an overtime thriller. Gay was then chosen by the Rockets with the #8 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
LaMarcus Aldridge – like Gay, Aldridge had a nice two-year college career. In particular, Texas benefited tremendously from rewarding Aldridge with increased playing time in his sophomore year. His solid career stats included marks of 13.5 ppg, 58.5 fg% and 8.2 rpg. The Longhorns went 50-18 and, like the Huskies, made it to the Elite Eight in 2006 before bowing out to LSU. Aldridge was then selected by the Bulls with the #2 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
Jordan Farmar – though Farmar’s UCLA career started off fairly slowly, he ended his two-year stay in Westwood as one of the better floor generals in Bruins history. He put up 13.3 ppg and received extensive playing time with 32.2 mpg, though average marks of 5.2 apg and 1.2 spg bar him from inclusion in the Bruins’ pantheon. UCLA went 50-18, making it to the Final Four in 2006 before losing to eventual national champion Florida. Farmar was then selected by the Lakers with the #26 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
DeMarcus Nelson – Nelson showed an impressive work ethic during his four years at Duke, as he showed steady improvement in most of the key statistical categories. Some of his solid stats included averages of 10.8 ppg, 46.6 fg% and 1.2 spg. Like most Duke players, Nelson had a superb win-loss record of 109-27, though the Blue Devils never made it past the Sweet 16 during his college career.
Marvin Williams – Williams was “one-and-done” in Chapel Hill, and his brief college career was a blast. In limited playing time (22.2 mpg), he put up 11.3 ppg, grabbed 6.6 rpg and shot 50.6/43.2/84.7. He played a key role on a Tar Heels squad that went 33-4 and won the national title by beating a superb Illinois squad. Williams was then selected by the Hawks with the #2 pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.
D.J. White – White’s four years at Indiana ended with him being coached by Kelvin Sampson, and we all know how that went for the Hoosiers. He put up strong stats, averaging 14.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg and 2 bpg along with a 56.2% mark from the floor. He also bounced back from a broken left foot that wiped out most of his sophomore year. Indiana went 80-45, though they never made it past the second round of the Big Dance.
Randolph Morris – Morris had a decent three-year stay in Lexington, though Big Blue Nation expected much more from him. His stat line included marks of 12.6 ppg and 6.0 rpg in limited playing time (23.8 mpg). He also shot 57.8% from the floor and put up a decent 66.1% from the charity stripe. Kentucky would have benefited from better play by Morris, though, as the Wildcats went 72-31 and never made it to the Final Four. Morris then signed with the New York Knicks in 2007; interestingly, he went undrafted in 2005 but had his eligibility restored by the NCAA even though he had hired an agent.
Darius Washington Jr. – Washington had an interesting two-year stay at Memphis. He proved to be a scoring guard, averaging 14.4 ppg while only dishing out 3.5 apg. While he played solid defense, averaging 1.5 spg, he’s perhaps most famous for missing a free throw in the 2005 Conference USA title game, giving Louisville the title instead. The Tigers went 55-20 and lost to UCLA in the 2006 Elite Eight. Washington then declared for the 2006 NBA Draft and was not selected.
Arron Afflalo – Afflalo finished his three-year stay at UCLA as one of the best players of the post-Ed O’Bannon era. His scoring was his hallmark, as he put up 14.8 ppg. Most of his other stats weren’t eye-popping, though, which keeps him from inclusion in the Bruins’ pantheon. For example, he only shot 37.3% from beyond the arc and put up a mere 3.5 rpg. The Bruins went 80-24 and made it to the Final Four in 2006 and 2007, losing to Florida both times. Afflalo was then selected by the Pistons with the #27 pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.
Mike Williams – Williams had a very quiet two-year stay in Austin. He never averaged more than 15 mpg and put up other pedestrian stats, such as marks of 3.2 and 2.3 ppg in his two seasons as a Longhorn. It’s safe to say that Aldridge made the bigger impact for Texas in this recruiting class. Williams then transferred to Cincinnati.
Glen Davis – “Big Baby” Davis had a great three-year run for LSU. His excellent stats included marks of 16.7 ppg and 9.6 rpg, though his 49.5% shooting from the floor could have been better. He saw extensive playing time (32 mpg) and played good defense, averaging 1.2 bpg and 1.1 spg. The Tigers went 64-34, losing to UCLA in the 2006 Final Four. Davis was then selected by the Sonics in the second round of the 2007 NBA Draft.
The overall results were revealing. Of the 60 profiled players who played college basketball, only five of them (Jawad Williams, Felton, McCants, Anthony and Marvin Williams) played on national title-winning teams. 11 others (Torbert, Ford, Simien, Paul Davis, Redick, Shelden Williams, Brown, Deng, Farmar, Afflalo and Glen Davis) played on teams that reached the Final Four at least once. 14 others (Fraser, Rodgers, Adams, Winston, Padgett, Brooks, Butch, Nardi, Hairston, Crawford, Aldridge, Morris, Washington Jr. and Mike Williams) played on teams that reached the Elite Eight at least once. 14 of the profiled players (Lee, Childress, Redick, Roberson, Shelden Williams, Brooks, Butch, Jones, Ibekwe, Hairston, Farmar, Nelson, Washington Jr. and Afflalo) captured at least one conference tournament title.
Based on these results, here are what I think constitute reasonable expectations for a star hoops recruit. First, the recruit must play well; to clarify, he should be regarded (by a reputable authority such as Statsheet) as one of his team’s top five players for the majority of his time in school. Second, his team should advance to the Elite Eight at least once during his career.
Hopefully rabid college fans will remember that quite a few factors go into either winning a national title or making a Final Four appearance, such as luck (March Madness), coaching, cohesiveness and the right amount of talent. On the last point, see the 2002 Maryland and 2006-07 Florida teams, which featured just one McDonald’s All-American among them (Corey Brewer).
Reasonable Expectations for Star Hoops Recruits – Part III April 11, 2009
Posted by flashbuzzer in Sports.Tags: 2003, college basketball, recruiting
1 comment so far
My previous post provided a synopsis of the college basketball careers of various members of the class of 2002.
This post focuses on players from the class of 2003. This class was perhaps best known for featuring the best prep star since Lew Alcindor…
Again, many thanks to Statsheet for making this post possible.
Chris Paul – Paul had a high-profile two-year run at Wake Forest. He was one of the best floor generals in the nation during his career, averaging 15.0 ppg, 6.3 apg and 2.5 spg. His stellar shooting was just icing on the cake; he put up 47.1/46.9/83.8. Paul led the Demon Deacons to a 48-16 record, though they never made it past the Sweet 16. He was then selected by the Hornets with the #4 pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.
Shannon Brown – The athletic Brown had a decent three-year career at Michigan State. He began to emerge as a dominant scorer in his junior year, putting up 17.2 ppg. For his career, he shot a sterling 83.1% from the foul line and averaged a solid 28.0 mpg, though his 36.4% shooting from beyond the arc should have been better. The Spartans went 66-31 and made it to the Final Four in Brown’s sophomore year; he was then selected by the Cavaliers with the #25 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
Drew Lavender – Lavender put up fairly pedestrian stats during his two years at Oklahoma. While he played solid defense, averaging 1.7 and 1.6 spg in his two seasons as a Sooner, he never cracked the 4 apg barrier, which is quite galling for a lead guard. The Sooners went 45-19 from 2003-05 and only appeared in the Big Dance once, bowing out in the second round. Lavender then transferred to Xavier.
Dion Harris – Harris happened to play for the Maize and Blue during their long NCAA Tournament drought. He played extensively for Michigan, averaging 32.1 mpg. While he shot a superb 80.4% from the foul line, marks of 38.1% from the field and 35.4% from the 3-point line didn’t cut the mustard. The Wolverines went 80-53 during Harris’ four years in Ann Arbor, winning the NIT title in his freshman year.
Luol Deng – Deng had a superb “one-and-done” run at Duke. He put up 15.1 ppg and 6.9 rpg, getting extensive playing time with a mark of 31.1 mpg. He also proved to be a capable defender, averaging 1.1 bpg and 1.3 spg. The Blue Devils went 31-6, advancing to the Final Four before falling to eventual national champ Connecticut. Deng was then chosen by the Suns with the #7 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft.
Kris Humphries – Humphries had a strange journey to Minnesota, as he originally signed with Duke before obtaining a release from his National Letter of Intent. He put up superb stats for the Golden Gophers in his one season of college ball, including marks of 21.7 ppg, 10.1 rpg and 1.1 bpg. Minnesota only went 12-18 and missed the postseason, though. Humphries was then selected by the Jazz with the #14 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft.
David Padgett – Padgett stayed one season in Lawrence and got some decent run, putting up 19.2 mpg. While his scoring (6.5 ppg) and rebounding (4.5 rpg) were decent for a freshman, fellow diaper dandies would have been glad to match his 1.4 bpg. The Jayhawks went 24-9 and lost to Georgia Tech in the Elite Eight, and Padgett transferred to Louisville during the off-season.
Aaron Brooks – Brooks stayed four years at Oregon and went through various ups and downs. After improving his stats across the board in his sophomore year, his junior season was a disappointment. Then he played well in his senior year to finish with solid career averages of 13.1 ppg and 83.3% shooting from the foul line. Brooks’ 4.1 apg and 1.1 spg showed that he was definitely a shoot-first guard, though. The Ducks went 76-42, losing to eventual national champ Florida in the Elite Eight in 2007.
Brandon Cotton – Cotton had a very brief, sad stay in East Lansing. He only played a total of 16 minutes over three games for the Spartans. After his uncle was shot and killed, Cotton decided to transfer to Detroit. For the sake of completeness, it should be noted that Michigan State went 18-12 that season, losing to Nevada in the first round of the Big Dance.
Brandon Bass – Bass had a good two-year run at LSU. His solid numbers included averages of 15.1 ppg, 77.9% shooting from the charity stripe, 8.2 rpg and 1.8 bpg. He also saw extensive action for the Tigers, as he averaged 34.3 mpg. LSU went 38-21 and never made it past the first round of the Big Dance, though. Bass was then selected by the Hornets in the second round of the 2005 NBA Draft.
Leon Powe – like Brooks, Powe’s college career had its highs and lows. He put up great numbers for Cal when he was healthy, including marks of 17.8 ppg and 9.8 rpg in 32.5 mpg. Unfortunately, knee surgery kept him out of the 2004-05 season. The Golden Bears went 33-26 in the two years that Powe suited up for them, never making it past the first round of the Big Dance. Powe was then selected by the Nuggets in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft.
Brian Butch – it’s safe to say that in many respects, Butch’s career at Wisconsin was not spectacular. He took the atypical step of redshirting his freshman year. Then he put up pedestrian stats during his four years in Madison, including marks of 9.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg and 62.6% shooting from the foul line. His defenders will note that he put up these stats in only 20.0 mpg, though his detractors will ask why he didn’t receive extensive playing time. The Badgers went 105-32 and advanced to the Elite Eight in 2005, losing to eventual national champ North Carolina.
Mike Nardi – Nardi had a decent 4-year career for Villanova, playing in Jay Wright’s guard-friendly system. He put up 10.1 ppg, 3.3 apg and shot 82.6% from the foul line, though his 37.8% shooting from beyond the arc wasn’t quite up to snuff. The Wildcats benefited from his extensive time on the court (30.9 mpg) as they went 92-41, losing to eventual national champions North Carolina and Florida in the 2005 and 2006 editions of the Big Dance, respectively.
Mike Jones – Terrapins fans probably couldn’t have guessed that Jones would only put up 18.6 mpg when he signed on the dotted line for Gary Williams. On the bright side, his shooting averages of 43.2/41.0/80.2 were superb for an athletic wing guard. Maryland went 83-47 during Jones’ four years in College Park, never making it past the second round of the Big Dance. They did beat Duke to win the ACC Tournament in 2004.
Ekene Ibekwe – Ibekwe joined Jones in a recruiting class that definitely looked promising for the Terps back in 2003. Like Jones, he saw limited playing time, averaging 21.0 mpg during his four-year stay in College Park. While most of his stats were nothing to sneeze at, he did put up 6.1 rpg and 1.8 bpg.
