Useful things to know …
The safest place to sit in a commercial airplane is in the back.
Be good to planet Earth. It’s the only
home you have …
Why everyone should plant trees +
ten more
reasons
2002 study:
Green walkways extend human lifespans
Trees are Earth's lungs: each tree removes 48 pounds
of carbon dioxide annually
One tree reduces water runoff (leading to soil erosion and flooding) by 4,000 gallons annually
Trees add 3–7 percent to property value
Three shade trees can reduce air conditioning bills up to 30 percent
Urban canopy goal: 40 percent
Give trees
as inexpensive yet meaningful gifts
A tree-planting guide +
another guide + where to plant and not plant trees around the home
Tree selection with
images and description
The online version of this classic book: The Simple Act of Planting a Tree
How to avoid landscape design mistakes
Celebrate Arbor Day and
Earth Day
How to certify a community as Tree
City USA (See years certified for all USA
cities.)
A tale of two urban forests
(with similar human populations): Pittsburgh with
31,500 street trees versus Minneapolis with 250,000 street trees.
What does it take to become a green city? The top 10 green cities in America. A personal criteria for green: aesthetics (zero litter, architecture and landscaping as public works of art); 100% clean air, soil and water; conservation and large-scale recycling (not just by consumers, but industry); healthy lifestyle planning (pedestrian and bike pathways, recreation outlets/centers); plentiful xeriscape parks, trees and gardens; farm preservation/urban sprawl policies; functional mass transit; auto traffic coordination (to reduce emissions and conserve fuel consumption), etc.
Besides hybrids, another alternative to all-gasoline autos: biodiesel,
especially vegetable
oil diesel
(What could be next, the veggie diesel/electric hybrid? Imagine the fuel savings and cleaner air
if city and school buses were
converted to veggie diesel immediately, then veggie diesel/electric hybrids
in the long run. Interestingly enough, groundwork has been laid in Pittsburgh.
Even more interestingly, the initial groundwork was laid out in 1900 by the
inventor of
the diesel engine and realized by Brazil in
1979.)
Where to recycle nonworking computers, electronics and other items
America’s health crisis …
Despite its significant health care spending lead, the US is
significantly behind other
Western countries on primary health care.
No surprise: It is now confirmed by a 2008 study that cancer diagnosis in the latter stages is linked to lack of insurance: one very real story.
Over 46 million Americans are without health insurance (US Census Bureau). And the number is increasing. Job-based health insurance fell for the fifth consecutive year. Study finds 90 percent of workers are denied coverage or cannot afford it.
Three partial solutions:
Fee-based walk-in health care without insurance: Family Medical (Missouri), MedXpress (Texas), RediClinic (Midwest and New York), QuickHealth (California)
Regardless of ability to pay: East End Community Health Center (Pittsburgh), Mercy Health Center (Pittsburgh), The Clinic (Phoenixville, Pennsylvania)
On-site homeless health care: Street Medicine, Operation Safety Net (Pittsburgh)
And one comprehensive solution: The same health program that members of Congress enjoy.
America’s other health crisis …
Over 65% of Americans
are overweight (BMI over 25%); if unchecked, growing to 75%
by 2015.
What is the problem with excess weight?
Obesity overtakes smoking as the
leading cause of death in the US.
Obesity
is linked with type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure (140/90
or higher), breast and colon cancer, and gallbladder disease.
Heavy people’s brains
may age faster.
The solution? Eat less (and smarter), exercise more. Type 2 diabetes is preventable.
How independent-thinking are
we, really?
The Stanford prison experiment
The obedience to
authority experiment
The
framing
effect study + Irrational
decisions driven by emotions (press release) + full
text, $10
Other coverage: The
emotional brain +
Emotions fuel irrational acts
Organizations that support creativity/innovation …
MacArthur
Foundation Genius Award recipients (MacArthur
Fellows)
Useful news …
Produce
with ripeness
stickers to be on shelves in 2007 [Update: Not yet on shelves.]
Vegan
diet best
therapy for type 2 diabetes + press
release
Google makes available free to download in PDF format books in
the public domain
Pittsburgh launches free
Wi-Fi
Historic news …
Cancer treatment breakthrough
triggers apoptosis
in cancer cells.
Prediction:
As significant of a development as the 1971 announcement of the microprocessor.
Actually, more. Full article available from Nature
Chemical Biology magazine; fee or subscription required.
Planets now eight, not nine (nor is Pluto the first former planet); almost became twelve or 53 (possibly more). Here is the new line up. Background and explanation from the co-discoverer of Eris (originally Xena), the almost tenth planet. Also, fun and enlightening reading on misconceptions in astronomy.
Microchips make the leap to optical technology, speeding processing a thousand times. May be commercial by 2011. Details from collaborators Intel and UCSB.
Bad policies revealed …
Government Accounting Office concludes $1.4
billion anti-drug campaign since 1998 is a failure
The Walls Tumbled by Time: From China to Berlin, Fences Have Failed to Exclude or Contain
What we don’t know about the music around
us …
Traditional music is the well-spring of other forms of music, yet
it is not a category you will find at iTunes, Amazon, Borders and other
music resellers. Fortunately, it is recognized by The
Library of Congress.
Recommended reading
+ links
Favorite quotes
A truly insightlful, inspiring commencement address
How to make a living via
the Internet
Where to
find cask-conditioned ale
in North America + a few places that
brew them
Everything in perspective
One family’s genealogy
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