Road Full of Promise

Brain Farts

2012-05-01T10:59:00.003-07:00

Many of us have these moments during the day where we simply lose track of what we are doing, what we were supposed to remember, or just make bone-head decisions. These temporary lapses of our normal perfect selves are called, humorously, "brain farts".

New evidence from studies done by psychologists suggest some common interactions in our daily lives that may actually cause these brain farts. Many of these causes are typically things that annoy, cause illusions, or are things where we simply have brains that did not evolve to perceive such things.

So here we go:

Photos

In the evolutionary history of our brains, we simply did not develop the subconscious aspect of separating objects or people from what is in the picture. We can consciously see or understand what the photo is, but what is hard for us is the separating aspect. For example, studies done on people throwing darts demonstrate that people are much less accurate when throwing darts at pictures of people they like (babies, family, etc) but the opposite comes true when throwing at those they do not (Hitler for example). Our brains, while great, fail to separate appearance from reality.

Beeps

Irritating and annoying as they are, beeps are everywhere in our modern world. Just like photos, our brains did not evolve to handle beeps. Thus we struggle to grasp them and find them less than pleasant (think alarms). We enjoy and easily handle natural sounds. Natural sounds are made up of transfers of energy, one object coming into contact with another, and then gradually dissipating. The perceptual system evolved for this, but not for beeps. Beeps are loud and then stop quickly, with no change over time or fading away. Because of this difference it confuses the brain and thus causes a form of brain fart.

Phones

If you are like me, I bet you get constant updates (push notifications to techies) on your iPhone or like device. Texts, news, sports, new make your move on Words with Friends... whatever, we are constantly attached to our phones. For our brains, we are constantly bombarding them with sensory data, filtering out useless noise and detecting important signals. Because we get so many vibrations on our phones, we develop "phantom vibrations", over time we miss-associate daily life sounds as getting an update, text, or phone call. This causes a form of brain fart.

Wheels

Ever looked at a wheel going around? It appears to be going backwards right? A theory on this phenomenon, called the "continuous wage wheel illusion", where in which the brain's motion perception system takes samples of its inputs as a series of discrete snapshots (think of how a movie camera works, assembling individuals frames into a movie like projection). Our brains are not always fast enough to interpret the frame rate of individual pictures, and thus make things look backwards as in the car wheel example. This overworking of the brain, causes a brain fart once again.

Doors

Finally, and this one came to me as a surprise, entering a new room through a doorway causes a brain fart. Passing through a door triggers an "event boundary" in the mind. This separates one set of thoughts and memories from the next. Like walking through a door, our brains create a new blank slate walking through, thus we forget what was previously on our minds. Typically mental event boundaries help us organize our thoughts and memories as we travel through a dynamic world, but when trying to remember what we came in the room for in the first place, well you know... we forget.

There are of course many more ways to have a brain fart, these are just some of the interesting ways, ways we may not think of in our daily lives. What it does allude to is, finding that nice, quiet, room with little distractions can really help us in our trains of thought.

Share your brain fart stories in the comment section below. For me, I have them all the time when retrieving something for my mom, as I am constantly reminded of...

For more, visit both the link below and the original article posted on Live Science.
http://news.yahoo.com/top-5-things-cause-brain-farts-154851714.html

Veterans and Post War Suicide May Be Linked to Brain Disease

2012-04-27T19:56:00.001-07:00

As many soldiers return as heros from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, a troubling and saddening phenomenon is occurring. According to a study authored by Dr. Margaret C. Harrell and Nancy Berglass and published through the Center for a New American Security have concluded that one U.S. veteran attempts suicide every 80 minutes. The report also reveals that 1,868 veterans made suicide attempts in 2009 alone. Much of what to make of these staggering numbers is understood through post-traumatic stress disorder (P.T.S.D.) along with the emotions of high unemployment and loss of military camaraderie.

It's not just returning veterans that are attempting suicide, it's also current service personnel. The study goes on to point out that between 2005 to 2010, approximately one service member would attempt suicide every 36 hours. Nearly as many American troops both at home and abroad have committed suicide in 2010 as were killed in combat while fighting in Afghanistan. Many are citing a lack of mental health programs in the U.S. military system, both for current members of the military and as citizens when they come back home.

"The rates per 100,000 people of suicide among active duty personnel in the Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force. The statistics show an increase in suicide rates since 2001, compared with the relatively steady rate of suicide among the U.S. civilian population" - Source: NPR

The trend seems to be on the rise over the past decade. In 2008, 197 Army suicides were accounted for, both of active and non-active-duty personell. In 2009, this number rose tragically to 245, and through May of 2010, had already been at 163.

To combat this rising trend, the Pentagon has been implementing new programs targeted at reducing these suicides and to better take care of the needs of military personel. Former military psychiatrist Stephen Zenakis, who is a retired brigadier general believes much more is needed to be done. "There's a whole culture change that would need to occur at the bases here in the United States before we really felt that effect. It may not really be for two to three years until we really recognize that" (NPR).

New evidence from an autopsy of a 27-year old former Marine who committed suicide recently may have shed an important new light on why suicide rates are so high. Doctors performing the autopsy discovered that his brain had been physically changed by a disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy (C.T.E.), which is a degenerative condition known for affecting boxers, football players, and other athletes who participate in activities that involve repeated blows to the head. People with C.T.E. have an abnormal form of protein that accumulates and eventually destroys cells throughout the brain, including notably, the frontal and temporal lobes. These areas of the brain regulate impulse control, judgement, multitasking, memory, and emotions.

Following on this discovery, doctors performed autopsies on more than a dozen more veterans who committed suicide. They found the same results over and over. This begs the question as Nicholas Kristof writes in his Op-Ed column in the 4/26/12 New York Times, "could blasts from bombs or grenades have a catastrophic impact similar to those of repeated concussions in sports, and could the rash of suicides among young veterans be a result?"

As Kristof points out, because this condition is considered permanent and not able to be cured with therapy, do military families want to here this ominous news? As one military mother states in his article, it is at least a way to know why.

Let's hope that those returning from the battlefield get the proper care they deserve, and bring more attention to the affects of C.T.E. to find ways of reducing its impacts.

Sources:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2057061/One-U-S-veteran-attempts-suicide-80-minutes-Hidden-tragedy-Afghanistan-Iraq-wars.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/26/opinion/kristof-veterans-and-brain-disease.html

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127860466

UPDATE: Tragically, former New England Patriots Linebacker Junior Seau was found dead this morning after an apparent suicide. It is speculated that Seau suffered from C.T.E. as did former Chicago Bears defensive back Dave Duerson, who also committed suicide on Feb. 17th.

http://www.boston.com/sports/blogs/thebuzz/2012/05/report_junior_s.html

Higher Education In America: Special Series

2012-04-27T19:44:00.003-07:00

Over the next few weeks, I will be producing a series of blog posts about the state of the higher education system in United States. Prompted by my soon to be graduation (fall 2012) and a sign on the campus of the University of Oregon that stated "College Debt Reaches 1,000,000,000,000" (yes, that is 1 trillion), I have decided to look into just what is the student debt in America, what does it mean for our future, and what will need to happen to make these issues less of a burden in the future.

I will also be researching and writing about financial aid, how education pays off, and the pricing / cost of attending college. In addition, I will be looking at and blogging about a study I received from a mentoring economics professor here at the U of O about the costs of skipping classes.

I personally have invested interest in this topic being a current student, even without college debt (thanks to my parents), but I think it's really an issue that has many more affects than just for students and their families. Affects are present in our federal and state budgets, personal wealth, overal competitiveness as a 21st century nation among many others.

Stay tuned for more posts and if you have any thoughts or comments about the subject, or a personal anecdote about your college experience, please drop a comment.

Climate Change In The American Mind with Anthony Leiserowitz

2012-04-26T11:18:00.001-07:00

Anthony Leiserowitz

Last night I attended a guest lecture titled Climate Change in the American Mind, with Director of the Yale Project on Climate Change, Anthony Leiserowitz, Ph. D. The event housed here at the University of Oregon in the very environmentally friendly building, the Many Nations Longhouse. The U of O is a familiar place for Leiserowitz, a few years back he received his Masters and Ph. D here. Among many, he is recognized as an expert on climate change and public opinion, both American and internationally and has been an adviser to many public policy officials.

Many Nations Longhouse at the University of Oregon

Opening his talk, he illustrated the issue of misunderstanding of climate science and the question of why some people are very interested about the issue and why others are much less so. Basing off three major pillars of consumer behavior, social norms, and political behaviors he continued to explain his process of research, and from that research over many years, a model of outreach. Highlights of outreach including the media, individual journalists, weather-casters, and regular folk perspectives.

Looking back over the past decade or so, there has been a generally moderate level of belief that climate change has occurred and is continuing, but then a sudden drop in 2010, and since then belief has still not been back up to periods prior. Leiserowitz likens this to the proceedings of the tobacco debates many years ago and that many Americans feel climate change is less about themselves as Americans, but much more as a distant issue. This phenomenon he mentions is a key point; that there is a disassociation of the issue between every day Americans and the effects along with solutions of climate change.

In 2010, Leiserowitz points to a perfect storm of issues that caused this sudden decline in public opinion towards climate change. The five major sources coming from the 1) economic recession, 2) declining media coverage, 3) unusually cold weather, 4) an effective denial industry, 5) "climategate" (wikipedia article). Many of these issues were propagated through a very strong message of denial through the rise of the Tea Party and Republican control of the House of Representatives.

Leiserowitz Speaking at the U of O

The next point he wanted to make is that there are multiple forms of nay-sayers. All of which have different reasons. Further that he describes there are Six Types of Americans with respect to climate change. First there are the alarmed, people who are very nervous about the potential affects of climate change who represent 12% of the population. Next, there are the concerned, people who are concerned but not very nervous, 27% of people. Then the cautious, representing 25%. The next three personifying the deniers, with disengaged (10%), doubtful (15%), and dismissive (10%). What is key here to note Leiserowitz says, is that while there are more people towards the attentive side, the firmly convinced minority of dismissive individuals are very loud "soap boxers" and are well representing in congress along with the media.

When he asked the crowd, which was almost bursting outside of the medium sized room, what the first image was when they heard the term climate change or global warming, overwhelmingly (including myself) pictured ice melting. From his research, he has found that this is the most common image in the American mind and it is one that creates a problem. "How many people here live or have been to Antartica?" he asked us. No one had raised their hands. "There is the problem, this reinforces the distant association of the issue. Americans don't associate the positive feedback effects or the connections of the issues."

O-Zone Hole Model

Much of this he claims are due to the progression of climate and environmental issues in the American mindset. For example, over the three past decades, Americans and the world have looked at solving the O-Zone Layer Depletion as a being a first step in global environmental preservation. People have been subjected to new problem after another, with little time in between. Thus they are collected and blend together each of these different issues. For example, many people incorrectly associate O-Zone depletion with climate change, even though they are separate issues. Furthermore, O-Zone Depletion has a simple mental model that comes along with it. Something that climate change does not have is this simple mental model. It is a hard system to depict in the mind. There are the shocking aspects of seeing a polar bear on a single piece of ice, but it is harder to connect the systems of a warming planet to increases in disease around the world. Interestingly, very few, to almost no one associates the connection climate change has to the impact of human health. Instead, simply put, most people do not connect the dots and have a very just about polar bears mindset.

Shocking Image of Climate Change

Leiserowitz points to how there is a significant difference between the egalitarian mindset, one that favors the equality among living entities, and the individualism present in American culture. Interestingly enough, the most important issue to the individualism mindset is the demand for freedom and independence of fossil fuels and of foreign based energy sources. When asked if this mindset is present in other nations around the world, Leiserowitz cites that the four most common places, Canada, the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, all have two things in common; all are of ruggard frontier mindsets (minus the U.K.) and are English speaking. Does this translate perfectly, he was not willing to say definitively, but merely suggested some link in ideology.

In conclusion, Leiserowitz suggests a few ideas towards the future with climate change. First, a diverse support of the population is needed, not just from a few politicians, concerned citizens, and scientists, but that many more people need to form a silent majority of sorts, that support their electorate to make decisions that will be rewarded. Next, to recognize that many people who are very strongly in support of addressing the issue live in bubbles. Noting that here in Eugene, we are a sub-culture of super green fanatics, and that this is not something seen in other places around the United States. For example, when I was in New Orleans working on a post hurricane Katrina service project, I never came across recycling stations or really anything of the concept. Finally, that knowledge is necessary but insufficient, rather that we need societal demands and actions of change rather than individual ones.

If you would like to learn more about Anthony Leiserowitz and his work surrounding climate change and public opinion, please follow the link below to his profile at Yale and his web-site. Also, be sure to watch the video below, where Leiserowitz explains the Six Types of Americans.

Leiserowitz on the Six Types of Americans:

Additional Links:

Profile:
http://environment.yale.edu/profile/leiserowitz/

Yale Project on Climate Change Communication Homepage:
http://environment.yale.edu/climate/

Possible 'Universal' Cancer Vaccine Developed in Israel

2012-04-24T20:17:00.001-07:00

For millions of people around the world affected by cancer, there is some good news coming out of Tel Aviv, Israel this past week. Researchers working on a collaboration project between the drug company Vaxil Biotheraputics and Tel Aviv University have developed a new therapy that targets a molecule found in 90% of all cancers. This therapy, done through a universal injection would allow patient's immune system to fight off common cancers, such as breast and prostate cancer.

Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide and accounted for 7.6 million deaths (around 13% of total deaths) in 2008 according to the World Health Organization. The types of cancers most affecting people around the world include lung (1.37 m deaths), stomach (736,000), liver (695,000), colorectal (608,000), breast (458,000), and cervical cancer (275,000). A majority of these deaths, 70%, occurred in low and middle income countries, where treatment is less available and of lower quality. By 2030, if the current rate continues, the WHO projects over 13.1 million people will die of cancer worldwide. This new therapy out of Israel could significantly lower these numbers if it successful.

Within the United States, almost 12 million people currently have been diagnosed with a form of cancer as of 2008 according to the American Cancer Society. This total is roughy split between males with 5.5 million and women with 6.5 million patients. The highest prevalence being with breast cancer in women, which constitutes more than a sixth of all cancer patients.

Cancer arrises out of one single cell. Under certain conditions, the cell with undergo a transformation from a normal cell into a tumor cell through a multistage process. This progression from a pre-cancerous lesion to malignant tumor can be the result of the interaction of a person's genetic make up and three major external agents. The external agents being categorized as 1) physical carcinogens, 2) chemical carcinogens, and 3) biological carcinogens. Furthermore, cancer development incidence can rise dramatically with age, and is likely attributable to the build up of risk factors.

For all the environmental and genetic risk factors, and the increasing prevalence of cancer, a discovery of this nature is remarkable. Preliminary results from clinical trails have shown the vaccine can trigger an immune response in patients, subsequently reducing the levels of cancer. Researchers believe the vaccine could be used to combat small tumors if detected early enough and also help prevent the return or spread of disease in patients who have undergone alternative forms of treatment, such as surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation treatment.

Tel Aviv University

Typically, the human immune system fails to detect cancer cells or perceive them as a threat. While the immune system is excellent at attacking foreign cells such as bacteria, tumors are formed by the patients own cells that have malfunctioned, making it harder to detect. What researchers have discovered, is that a molecule called MUC1, typically found in higher amounts on the surface of cancer cells can be used to aid the immune system in the detection of tumors. The molecule MUC1 is found both on cancer cells, as well as in healthy human cells. What the difference is in is by what amount is present. Higher levels are found on cancer cell surfaces, where as significantly lower levels are found on healthy cells. The vaccine recognizes this difference between cells and works to identify cancerous cells for the immune system. MUC1 is found in 90% of all cancers, thus it can combat the growth and spread of a wide range of cancers.

This research is promising and let's hope that with further trials and further research, this vaccine will be able to come to market in the near future.

For more on the topic, please visit the following sources:

American Cancer Society:
http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/CancerBasics/cancer-prevalence

World Health Organization:
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs297/en/

The Telegraph:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9191848/Universal-cancer-vaccine-developed.html

1 in 2 New College Graduates are Jobless or Underemployed

2012-04-22T23:10:00.003-07:00

As college seniors come into spring, many of us are preparing to graduate. As we do, we will be facing a weak labor market that could make finding a job of our dreams really difficult. About 1.5 million or 53.6% of graduates under the age of 25 were jobless or underemployed in 2011. This was the highest rate in more than a decade. Going back to the year 2000, this rate was just 41%.

Many college graduates are increasingly turning to lower-wage jobs such as waitering, bar-tending, retail; jobs that do not utilize the investment of four years or more of higher education. This is confounded by higher tuition and the increasing levels of student loans. According to Harvard economist Richard Freeman, student loan debt has surpassed $1 trillion.

While their knowledge and abilities are important to our society, demand for the arts and humanities have simply not been producing any form of market for jobs. This is contrasted with high demand from employers in science, education, and health care. Even within those categories, specific positions and majors vary on demand.

A lot of the decrease in demand for college graduates is attributed to technological changes and the macro economic downturn of recent years. By region, the hardest areas to find jobs were in Mountain West, where about 3 in 5 graduates are underemployed or jobless. Following in their footsteps were Southern states Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee, along with Pacific region states Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington. On the opposite end, Texas demonstrated strong higher skilled jobs among graduates attributed to clusters in high tech industries.

The middle level workers seem to be the worse hit, with job gains coming from top and bottom of the wage scale. Up to 95% of positions lost during the economic recovery occurred in middle-income occupations.

This poses a serious problem as college graduates are fresh out of college, with their skills at hand only to be faced with the burden of losing that competitive edge to future generations of college graduates. It's an affect that hampers the economy today and in the near future.

It is said the most successful people find what they are good at, and stick with that career path through the thick and thin, but at this point, just how thin can we go before we starve?

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-2-graduates-jobless-underemployed-140300522.html

Gender Wage Gap in America

2012-04-17T16:54:00.001-07:00

Following a report by the Institute for Women's Policy Research, the Economist published an article today illustrating the affect of the gender wage gap in America. To this day, women still earn significantly less than men in almost all forms of occupations.

In the previous year, 2011, full-time working women in America earned just 82.2% of the male median weekly earnings. This phenomenon was common across almost all occupations, only subtracting the fields of "stock clerks and order fillers" and "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks" where women made just slightly more than their male counterpart.

The gender wage gap is developed as a percentage of earnings women have against those of males. The gap was most obvious in CEOs and financial managers where female executives earned just 69% of what male's earned. In total this was nearly $658 less in median weekly earnings.

For more visit the Economist online: http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/04/focus-3?fsrc=scn/fb/wl/bl/americasgenderwagegap

The Existence of The Penny

2012-04-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

I am willing to bet you have a few pieces of change in your pocket rattling around as you walk down the street. I will also bet you'll be pretty likely to have a few pennies in there causing that ruckus. But here's the question: how often do those pennies make it out of your pocket to no long be noise makers, and actually go towards purchasing anything? Further, how many of those pennies are just wasted money, either lost or never used?

I doubt its very often. The only time I can actually remember someone paying or using pennies was in this Seinfeld episode where Kramer tries to pay for Calzones in pennies.

There have been many calls for the U.S. Government to dispand the penny. Up north in Canada the calls have been heard. The penny will soon be out of circulation. Due to rising prices of the metals the penny is made of in Canada, it actually costs 1.6 cents to produce the 1 cent penny, a loss of .6 cents. The cost and output is nearly identical back here in the United States. In total the Canadian Government claims to lose nearly $11 million a year producing and distributing the penny, not to mention the costs borne onto business and consumers who deal with pennies.

A 2008 report by a Quebec based bank, Desjardins, suggests the penny's existence had cost the Canadian economy nearly $150 million for year 2006. For example, Canada's big banks handle more than 9 billion pennies a year, which in amount to $20 million annually for processing.

The Bank of Canada also concluded in a 2005 study, that the pennies disbandment would not lead to any showings of inflation. This concept also cites the past examples of Norway, Australia, and New Zealand along with other nations who have not seen any systemic price increases.

Nevertheless, we still have our old friend, the penny. So what do you think? Should the penny stay?

For more:
http://www.freakonomics.com/2012/03/30/canada-kills-its-penny-can-we-please-be-next/

A Revealing Look At Food Waste

2012-04-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

In our current world's state of affairs, nearly one-third of food goes to waste according to a 2011 United Nations estimate. For one photographer, Klaus Pichler, this has become a passion that has inspired both fantastic displays of photography as well as a new book titled One Third. The new book displays images of food in advanced stages of decay along with speaking tones to which he intends to convey (more of these images can be seen on NPR's link below).

The book brings to image how the U.S. and Europe waste approximately ten times as much food per person as sub-Saharan Africa or Southeast Asia according the the U.N. estimate. (Report can be read by clicking this link) For the developing world, one of the major problems is storage, but unlike their counterparts in the developed world, consumers simply throw away huge amounts of food that are still edible.

Klaus Pichler says "there are lots of spontaneous decisions in the supermarket, people often don't stop to think about whether they're buying too much, or whether they could reuse leftovers instead of throwing them away."

Pichler explains more about his art and the story it tells to NPR's The Salt. The worst he mentioned about his photography process was about raw chicken and octopus decomposing at the same time. He says: "these two smells united, and it was horrible" and he further mentions that over the process it became important for him to "coexist with the rotting food."

For more on this story, visit the attached link below.

Revealing the Revoting Beauty of Food Waste NPR's The Salt
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/04/14/150494837/revealing-the-revolting-beauty-of-food-waste

One Man's Story On Detroit of Past

2012-04-14T11:54:00.000-07:00

Lost & Found's independent short documentary, released on the video sharing site Vimeo, tells the story of Allan Hill, a man who currently resides legally in the largest abandoned industrial building in the world. In the 1950's the Packard Auto Plant shut down after the company went out of business, renting the building to various trucking, car, and other manufactures. Over the past decade, no one but Hill has been operating or living inside.

The documentary titled "This Must Be The Place", tells Allan's story as the caretaker for the old building.

Its a very well done video, and I encourage you to watch it.

HILL from thismustbetheplace on Vimeo.

Direct Link:
http://vimeo.com/39346092

For more visit:Yahoo! Article

What Americans Pay in Taxes

2012-04-13T14:02:00.002-07:00

Last year, 2011, the federal government collected a total of $2.3 trillion in taxes. The majority of this was made up of by two sources, income tax which accounted for $1.1 trillion and payroll taxes, which accounted for $741.2 billion.

The graphic below (courtesy of NPR's Planet Money) displays the breakdown and extents of each of the respective taxes. The other forms of taxes are composed of corporate taxes ($200.8 billion), estate and gift taxes ($9.6 billion) and other forms ($268.7 billion).

What Taxes Go Towards:

The grand old question, but here are some basics on where each of these subsets of taxes go. Payroll taxes are deducted automatically from a person's paycheck, paid in part by employers and fund Social Security and Medicare. Individual income taxes pay for most of what the government does other than Social Security and Medicare. Other taxes such as estate taxes come from large inheritances, corporate tax paid by corporations, and the others category include customs duties, excise taxes on products (gasoline and the like).

How Much Do Americans Pay:

Below is a graphic that explains the average federal rate and average federal taxes paid per household for each income bracket.

For more on the subject, visit NPR's Planet Money blog:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/04/13/150441259/what-america-pays-in-taxes

What the Average American Consumes

2012-04-05T10:17:00.002-07:00

NPR's Planet Money program used data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to break down what the average American buys. The data was part of CPI Detailed Report for December 2011. The figure below is from this report (it can be found on the below link) and it details up to approximately 93% of what Americans use their incomes for. From what I can discern, this is after taxes disposable income. Keep in mind also, this is just average, it won't necessarily be what you spend.

Here's a few big expenditures:

Rent/Mortgages: 31.5%
Groceries: 8.6%
Food at Restaurants, delis, etc: 5.7%
Cars (new & used): 5.7%
Doctors, Dentists, etc: 3%

Some interesting ones:

TV, Music, Cable, etc: 1.9%
Movies, concerts, gym, etc: 1.7%
Books, Magazines, Newspapers: 0.2%
Pets and their associated goods: 1.1%
Shoes: 0.7%
Women's Clothing: 1.5%
Men's Clothing: 0.8%

Note: I find it rather interesting first of all that Americans spend significantly more on shoes than on all books, magazines, and newspapers. Furthermore, this gives a bit more notice to how there is a significant shift in America from the old form of physical media to more electronic media (music, TV, etc).

Also, as can be expected, women spend far more on clothes than men, almost twice as much in fact.

Many commenters on the article noted that healthcare should be far higher. I assumed it would be, but then I realized the aspect of averages (youth tend to spend less on healthcare than older generations), and thus this being the case, possibly that is a "low-researched" answer.

Comparing 1949 to 2011:

American's spend far less on food today as they did 62 years ago, almost 25% less in fact. There has almost been a complete switch in expenditure in housing expenses and food during this period as well. Transportation has risen, along with health care, but notably, apparel has decreased significantly ( maybe higher quantities of low cost clothes [Old Navy]?).

What do you think you spend your money on?

For more visit NPR's Planet Money page:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/04/05/149997097/what-americans-buy

Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei and His Take on Modern China

2012-04-04T21:54:00.002-07:00

In the linked video, Ai Weiwei says that "China cannot offer any real value to the world except for cheap labor, manufacture, and it's own so-called stability." Furthermore he comments that "life is never guaranteed to be safe." This is a very interesting take on China, one many political figures in the Chinese ruling party object to. I recommend this video interview from the UK's The Guardian newspaper.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/video/2010/mar/18/ai-weiwei-turbine-hall-tate

Another article where he equates China to the Middle Ages.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2011/apr/11/ai-weiwei-china-last-interview

Obesity in The United States

2012-03-31T12:00:00.000-07:00

Last month I wrote an article about obesity as a public good (not as a good thing) [link]. In it I talked about how increasing obesity rates are adding significant costs not just for the present, but for America's future.

Yesterday, CNBC published an article that showed that in a recent Gallup poll, 26% of American adults are classified as obese. The overal health-care costs associated with obesity are estimated at $147 billion a year. The measure of obesity is based on the body mass index (BMI), in which a person is classified as obese if they have a score of 30 or higher. Obese people have higher chances of heart disease, diabetes, strokes, some cancers, and other related issues.

The article examined metropolitan areas in the U.S. and was designed to offer better understanding of the perspective of cities affected by obesity. Of the top 10 metro areas with the highest obesity rates, 58% of the residents were more likely to report having a heart attack over the course of their lifetimes, and 34% more likely to report having high blood pressure. Those alone, are estimated to cost over $1 billion in medical costs each year.

Here are the top five cities with the highest obesities rates:

5. Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas
- Obesity Rate: 33.8%
- Annual Costs: $182.8 million

4. Rockford, Illinois
- Obesity Rate: 35.5%
- Annual Costs: $179.4 million

3. Huntington-Ashland, West Virginia
- Obesity Rate: 36%
- Annual Costs: $146.9 million

2. Binghamton, New York
- Obesity Rate: 37.6%
- Annual Costs: $131.5 million

1. McAllen - Edinburg - Mission, Texas
- Obesity Rate: 38.8%
- Annual Costs: $410.9 million

These costs are staggering. I know from personal experience, weight is easy to gain, but with just slight changes in diet and increased exercise that weight can come off as well. When we look at the static choices of eating unhealthy foods, we really need to consider the dynamic affects of eating unhealthy food. But, let's also understand that while this seems simple, know that for some in this country as the economy as been in recovery mode, affordable healthy options have been limited. Its just one example of the externalities of a changing economy and culture in the United States.

Sources:
http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/americas-fattest-cities.html

African Democracy

2012-03-31T07:00:00.000-07:00

Today, all but one African nation holds elections, the remaining being Eritrea. However, African democracy does not always produce representative governments. The Economist Intelligence Unit's annual democracy index ranks only one African country, Mauritius, as a full democracy. Their criteria is rather tough however, even classifying the very well praised Botswana as a flawed democracies.

A quantitative measure of good governance, called the Mo Ibrahim Index, shows that there is a decline of 5% since 2007 in African political participation. According to the think tank, Freedom House, the number of full electoral democracies among the 49 sub-Saharan countries has falled from 24 in 2005 to 19 as of today.

This does not mean Africa has not come a long way. In 1990, Freedom House had listed just three African countries with multiparty political systems, universal suffrage, regular fraud-free elections, and secret ballots. Reformers also have plenty of reasons to be hopeful. Growing sophistication of opposition groups have become less of a mess, divided, undemocratic, and starved of resources.

Impressive economic growth rates in many African countries have fueled a communications explosion. Political campaigns no longer need or depend on government-owned media or the ability to travel to distant villages. They are able to reach more young voters and capture the desire for political freedoms.

Let's hope this wave of democracy and political freedoms continue to grow in Africa.

For more on this: http://www.economist.com/node/21551494?fsrc=scn/fb/wl/ar/glasshalffull

Mega Millions Mania!

2012-03-30T15:30:00.000-07:00

Today is the big day! This evening $640 million dollar are at stake in the nation's Mega Millions Jackpot. This absurdly high number, totaling more than a half-billion dollars (before taxes) is really making flock to the local lottery stations. It may seem absurd given that the odds of winning are 1 in 176,000,000. But hey, it's just a dollar to buy a ticket, why not? As one lady I saw said, "you gotta play to win!"

Say you were to win. First thing one has to do to actually receive their winnings will be to decide if they prefer a lump-sum (all the money at once), or to have a payment system. The difference being in taxes paid. Remember, that $540 million is income, Uncle Sam wants some of it back you know..

An analysis by computer scientist Jeremy Elson, who contributed to a Washington Post article noted, "the expected value of a $1 ticket is only 53.2 cents (or a bit more or less, depending on your state." So maybe the deal isn't all that great, unless you simply find some utility (pleasure, excitement, etc) from playing the game itself.

Also in the article, Elson points out that if people decided to buy a ticket for every possible ticket combination, it would first cost $176 million of course, but you'd be guaranteed to win about $293 million after taxes. But... there is a catch. "First, if it takes fie seconds to fill out each card, you'd need almost 28 years just to mark the bubbles on the game tickets. You'd also use up the national supply of special lottery paper and lottery-machine printing ink well before all your tickets could be printed out." So there goes that option...

Nevertheless, people are still buying tickets such as a cafe worker in Arizona who sold $2,600 worth of tickets to a jackpot hopeful. As Jesse Carter, a retired soldier in Wisconsin who has doubled his weekly ticket spending to $55 said, "I feel like a fool throwing that kind of money away... but it's a chance you take in life, with anything you do."

Mike Catalano, chairman of the mathematics department at Dakota Wesleyan University points out, "the more tickets you buy, the better chances you have of winning." However, based on 90 people a year getting struck by lightning, you are 50 times as likely to get struck by lightning than to win the lottery. Further, based on U.S. averages, you're about 8,000 times more likely to be murdered than win the lottery, and even worse odds, 20,000 times more likely to die in a car crash than hit the lucky numbers. Let's just hope its not someone's unlucky day...

Last night as I was watching the news, the total jackpot was $540 million, in just twelve hours, it has now risen to $640 million according to the AP.

So, really if you find it fun to play, that may be worth your dollar input. Chances are, that will be the last time you ever see that dollar. But still, one has to play to win. Good luck tonight if you are playing, you may need a whole bunch of it...

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gxTOl06A9JYaGRQwI4C58QOFw4KA?docId=378e1c446e1842e1b5d927923f194474

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/mega-millions-frenzy-can-you-ever-beat-the-lotterys-long-odds/2012/03/30/gIQAbRmClS_blog.html?tid=sm_twitter_washingtonpost

Autism on The Rise

2012-03-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the CDC released a study showing a 78% increase in the diagnosing of Autism, Asperger syndrome, or related disorder in American children since the year 2000. The CDC notes that one explanation of this increase is the better screening and diagnosis methods. The report estimates that in 2008, one child in 88 received a diagnosis of Autism, Asperger syndrome, or related disorder. This is compared to recent years, which showed about one in 110 children in 2006, and one in 155 in 2002.

This increase shows that there has been a steady increase in diagnosis. A rate that was nearly twice as common as officials estimated it would be just five years ago.

The diagnosis process is made by specialized doctors making judgements about a child's behavior. At no point are blood or biologic tests involved. Diagnosis is given to those who show symptoms of severe language and social impairments, as well as unusual repetitious behavior(s). Genetics is believed to play a role, and CDC researchers are looking to learn about other possible factors such as illnesses that the mother had while pregnant and with medications pregnant women had used.

The CDC used estimated rates from 14 U.S. States to compile their data. States included, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, and Wisconsin. Within these states, Alabama demonstrated the fewest number of diagnosis, with one in 210 children, some of this being attributed to low available amounts of information. The highest states were Utah with one in 47 and New Jersey also showed a high rate of 1 in 49. Dr. Eric Fombonne, a psychiatrist at McGill University and Montreal Children's Hospital said in the NY Times that "it means that ascertainment is unequal across states."

The diagnosis is far more prominent in young boys before the age of 8. Boy were almost five times as likely to be diagnosed as girls. Boys are at a rate of one in 54 and girls are one in 252 for girls.

As many from the CDC have pointed out, Autism incidents are increasing. Whatever the causes, this disorder is posing further challenges for health care and our future. A careful eye on Autism is a wise position to take.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/30/health/rate-of-autism-diagnoses-has-climbed-study-finds.html?_r=1

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/autism-rates-screening-better-diagnosis-164651100.html

NYC School District To Ban "Loaded Words"

2012-03-29T22:52:00.001-07:00

The New York City School District is proposing to ban more than 50 words, the district has labeled as "loaded words" from standardized testing. The Department of Education has stated that the goal of banning these words is to limit distraction during tests as well as offense to certain groups that may have to the words. A policy that the department suggests is nothing new, and not something that is exclusive to New York, citing California and Florida as other states that have similar approaches. The department stated it wanted to avoid certain words if "the topic is controversial among the adult population and might not be acceptable in a state-mandated testing situation; the topic has been overused in standardized tests or textbooks and is those overly familiar and/or boring to students; the topics appears biased against (or toward) some group of people."

Included in the "loaded words" list are such words as: divorce, dinosaurs, birthdays, halloween, Christmas, and television. Certain words are on the list to avoid alluding to other concepts. Such as dinosaurs alluding to evolution that may offend fundamentalist Christians who believe in creationism. Further, as Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate birthdays, the term birthday is no longer to be used. Even further, Halloween may suggest paganism, thus also may be offensive. Rock 'n' Roll was also on the avoid list.

Professor Sam Wineburg of the University of Stanford, who is an expert in education notes that the latin meaning of education is 'to go out', and that "education is not about making us feel warm and fuzzy inside".

I tend to agree. Shielding students from certain bad words seems to be a rather foolish way to prepare students for the real world. I believe fully in the protection of minority rights, and the inclusion of opinions, but by banning words such as these, aren't we also in affect trumping the rights of others and banning their inclusion of opinion in schools? By no longer including topics such as evolution, or even paganism in schools, we are preventing students from that growth of deciding what to believe.

The Department of Education response has been that the banned words do not constitute censorship, but a method for "students to complete practice exams without distraction." In my opinion, this also is a poor policy point. Education is not just about gaining knowledge and regurgitating it during a test, rather it is information to use to apply to the world. More information and knowledge leads to more thoughts and ideas. By banning these words in tests, we assume that tests are mere mechanically designed devices of testing students, instead of opening the opportunity for students to learn during a test as well. As I see it, any form of censorship or banning (beyond words that are commonly regarded as vulgar) is limiting education of our youth, and future generations.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/lifestyle/2012/03/nyc-bans-halloween-birthdays-aliens-and-more-on-school-tests/

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/03/28/new-york-city-schools-ban-loaded-words-from-tests/?hpt=hp_c1

What do Raindrops in Rocks Tell Us?

2012-03-29T13:16:00.001-07:00

What can we learn from fossilized rocks with rain drops on them? It could really lead to more answers to Carl Sagan's paradox that the Earth was warm, even when the sun was dimmer (does this suggest green house gases were high due to the compensation of the sun's relative dimming?) and further, does this suggest that when higher levels of GHG's are present and a relatively brighter Sun, will there be different outcomes? Very interesting, I suggest this article below:

http://www.npr.org/2012/03/28/149527582/raindrops-in-rock-clues-to-a-perplexing-paradox

Confessing When Innocent

2012-03-16T09:00:00.000-07:00

I am a huge fan of Law & Order and I am always consumed by the idea that the episode's perpetrator (or "perp" as they say in Law & Order) should be locked away and the key thrown away. Of course, this make-believe world is just that, fake. Nevertheless, I would assume some of the methods depicted in the show are relatively close to the real world, of course with added dramatic nature.

That is why I found it quite interesting to read a story in the Economist that wrote about a study published in Law and Human Behavior by Saul Kassin and Jennifer Perillo of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York that suggests many innocent people simply confess to crimes they never in fact committed. This goes back to an example of the Innocence Project who since 1992 has used DNA evidence to exonerate 271 people who were wrongly convicted, in which a quarter of those 271 people actually confessed or plead guilty to the crime they were accused of.

This is bit of a mystery. Why would one confess to a crime, even more plead guilty in the court of law to a crime they knowingly did not commit? While the answers are not entirely conclusive as to why this happens, through laboratory tests, it seems many innocent confessors do so when interrogation techniques are added to the means of finding the truth. Some of these techniques include bluffing, such as the police suggesting a camera is present or that evidence exists that is not really in existence, or in some cases made up evidence intended to trick the person to confess.

The research suggests that confessions are a means to end the unpleasant experience of interrogation. I also wonder if some people simply don't want the shame and also confess to protect their psyche or family/loved ones.

Its an interesting pattern, and while some of these people may have mental disabilities or ulterior motives, it further gives the need to have concrete evidence of criminal behavior and further that uses of extreme interrogation methods may just not be all that effective.

For more: http://www.economist.com/node/21525840

For some added humor, you can watch this Star Wars Parody of an integration droid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV9_3R1NHnE&feature=player_embedded#!

Positive Signs In The U.S. Economy

2012-03-15T10:19:00.003-07:00

Tying a four-year low, fewer people sought unemployment benefits this past week of March. This has added confidence the job-market is showing signs of growth and strengthening. Applications for unemployment aid were down 14,000 to a seasonally-adjusted 351,000 according to a report released by the Labor Department. This has been a positive trend over the past six months as the average has declined 14% since October 2011.

Following this steady decline in unemployment benefits, employers have added an average 245,000 jobs a month between December and February. This amounts to the best three months of hiring in the past two years. The unemployment rate has also declined to 8.3%, the lowest in the past three years. This trend is expected to follow for March, with an additional 200,000+ jobs being added. This indicates the labor market is steadily growing, slowly indeed, but improving none the less.

February's rise in gas prices did drive U.S. wholesale prices up last month, but excluding this, inflation did not change significantly. The producer price index rose 0.4% and the core index (which excludes food and gas prices) increased 0.2%. In the past year, wholesale prices have increased 3.3%, and this represents the smallest year-over-year gain since August 2010.

All things considered, the job growth is driven by a stronger economy, which grew at an annual rate of 3% in the last three months of 2011. Consumers show more confidence and have added additional spending to the market. Auto sales and the stock market have both shown positive growth over this same period.

Manufacturing has also expanded in February. Manufacturing conditions rose in March to 12.5 on the index of manufacturing conditions, a measure used by the Federal Reserve Bank to measure the strength of the manufacturing sector. The Labor Dept. reports that in the last week of February, manufacturing jobs have grew by 31,000, and over the past year, jobs had increased by 227,000.

While these signs of growth are during an election year and the U.S. economy is still on a long path to full recovery since the 2007 recession began, these positive signs re-enforce my view America is back on the right track.

Sources: AP.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hWdSXd8-vuWc0f14K6w4cW5iAqyw?docId=d1017724a4be4014934f945248bc1fe9

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5izcL8QJnJ9nKdqi3U_pQTqh4JZTA?docId=ee0f8ae4921341669a1002e60ab269f5

LulzSec / Anon Demolition Day

2012-03-06T10:07:00.000-08:00

The leader of the LulzSec / Anonymous had been working with the FBI for the past seven months, all in a plan to take down the online hacking community. The hacker who goes by "Sabu" in the world of hackers and Hector Xavier Monsegur in the real world was captured and turned by FBI agents upon the threat of spending years in federal prison, without the chance to see his young children. Upon that, Sabu, protecting himself, gave up his hacker community leaders and today arrests were made, effectively striking the biggest blow to the group ever.

Will this be the end of LulzSec / Anonymous, probably. Is it the end of hacking and a group that is going to band together like this again? Probably not. What how has permanently changed is that their psychological aspect is completely destroyed. No longer can they pretend to be invincible or unbreakable. So maybe we will see another hacker group in the future, but probably not at the level seen with Anon / LulzSec.

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/03/06/hacking-group-lulzsec-swept-up-by-law-enforcement/#ixzz1oLNwgxdp

http://gizmodo.com/5890825/lulzsec-leader-betrays-all-of-anonymous

http://gizmodo.com/5890886/read-the-full-lulzsec-indictments-right-here

Republicans Need To Hurry Up

2012-03-06T09:55:00.000-08:00

Today is Super Tuesday, and still it is expected that we will not have a solid outcome where one man will finally come out as the GOP nominee. I am not really sure how much the GOP can afford to continue to lack a solid candidate. It is far easier to make head-way against an incumbent when the people around you in your own party aren't pulling at you as well. Besides, are we really wanting to have so many sways in the favorability of a candidate?

Obama on the other hand has been organizing and getting things going at the grassroots level, relatively quietly. So much to the extent that in a recent poll he is beating each GOP candidate in Ohio and Virginia. Its time for Republicans to gather around one candidate and put their efforts into beating Obama.

Every day that the GOP does not have a nominee is just one less day that efforts could be focused on Obama. That is the reason why, its time to unify the party and nominate a candidate.

Sources:

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/04/10571792-nbc-newsmarist-poll-santorum-romney-neck-and-neck-in-ohio

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/obama-election-campaign-quietly-organizes-while-republicans-fight-191727365.html

Neil deGrasse Tyson Warns of the Costs of Cutting NASA

2012-03-02T09:29:00.001-08:00

Neil deGrasse Tyson elements exactly what types of positive externalities come out of funding NASA. Currently we fund NASA half a penny for every tax dollar collected. Tyson suggests that a doubling of the funding of NASA to just 1 penny for every tax dollar would change the culture of a nation. I agree. In economics, reference the Romer Model. Furthering on the Solow Model, a landmark model in macroeconomics, Romer pointed to technology being not only the determinant of growth, which Solow suggested, but that the function of technology growth is based upon the population of a nation, the percentage of people focused on research, and then the direct improvements based upon that technology.

Positive macroeconomic growth in the nation is based on a shift in focus from just short run growth with sales, to making the investment in research for tomorrow. I agree 100% with Neil deGrasse Tyson, and I disagree with the trend of defunding NASA that President Obama is continuing. If our future generations are to compete, NASA, education, and infrastructure are what we need to focus on. Give a free market the tools to succeed, and let this nation bloom, that is a strong government mindset.

Watch the interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson on Fox Business:
http://video.foxbusiness.com/v/1483676909001/the-costs-of-cutting-nasas-budget/

Part 1: Consumer Habits Marketing

2012-02-29T11:00:00.000-08:00

*this is part one of a three-part mini series on consumer habits*

Retail companies are constantly trying to learn more and more about their consumers. The knowledge of how a consumer will decide upon a product, the store at which to shop at, how much they will spend on each product are all vital pieces of information for securing revenues. Marketing specialists in major retail companies in the United States utilize the power of data collection, analysis, and neuroscience to discover trends in how people operate. In recent years, these techniques have exploded with the funding of many corporate entities and the advancements by researchers at universities around the nation.

Information is analyzed using what is called predictive analytics, which attempts to understand not just consumer's shopping habits but also their personal habits, all with the goal to allow retail companies more efficiency in their efforts to market their brands, products, and stores.

For most shoppers, shopping at one store can be a seldom act. Traditionally, people will purchase goods at where they feel is most in line with what they desire. For example, clothing is something one would like to purchase at a department store. Cleaning supplies and home goods are more commonly purchased at major stores like Target. What retailers like Target want to do is convince their potential consumers to purchase both their clothes and cleaning goods all at one stop, their store. Stores that sell everything from cleaning supplies, to scarfs, to groceries, capturing peoples mindset to convince them that all can be purchased in one location is a primary goal.

This is a really tough message to get across however. Many consumer's shopping habits are ingrained in their nature, and changing these habits can be a very challenging process. Luckily for retailers, there are some brief periods in people's lives that can be opportunities to change habits. The holy grail of these are the times when new parents are expecting the birth of a child. New parents feel the sudden shock in their lifestyles with the welcoming of a child, and on long nights where a new mother has many cravings for Oreo cookies and also needs toilet paper for the bathroom, the idea of shopping at multiple locations is just not too appetizing. Parents then get more inclined to shop at a multiple purpose store, this is the retailers chance to convince parents that not only can they purchase their babies diapers at their store, but also their baby formula, vitamins, and even that new T.V. to relax with in the evening hours.

Marketing is a key and often hidden aspect of retail sales. For many, including myself, the lifestyle change of going to college has provided me an opportunity to be a habitual changer. In fact, my habits have changed a lot, and it seems Target has really done a great job of capturing me as a returning multiple purpose consumer. For many of my school supplies, health goods, and the occasional groceries, I typically shop there. It may also be due to their close proximity. Nevertheless, if you're a college student, don't be surprised to find an advertisement in your mail to visit a store, you are what retailers love, a person with the potential of changing habits.

For more on this story, visit the NY Times article: "How Companies Learn Your Secrets"