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**Books I'm Reading**
Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer
by Tracy Kidder
Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason - by Sam Harris
Contents Copyright © 2003-2009 by Brent Zupp — All Rights Reserved.
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Happiness consists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day, than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom to a man in the course of his life
~ Benjamin Franklin
Tumblelog - May 2009
- FDA May Restrict Acetaminophen
- The advisory committee voted that the single adult acetaminophen dose should be no more than 650 milligrams, significantly less that the current 1,000 milligrams often contained in two tablets of certain over-the-counter pain products. The panel of 37 doctors and other experts also said that the maximum total dose for 24 hours, now at 4,000 milligrams, should be decreased.
- New meta-analysis: Statins of benefit in primary prevention
- In conclusion, the authors say that despite their positive findings, the absolute overall treatment benefit in the current study population "would certainly be less than 1%, and significant numbers of participants would need to be treated to prevent one event."
- Immelt Speech: U.S. Companies Begin to Realize Their Mistake - BusinessWeek
- We must make a serious commitment to manufacturing and exports. This is a national imperative. We all know that the American consumer cannot lead our recovery. This economy must be driven by business investment and exports.
I think he may be wrong here. Recently heard a prediction that oil will become very expensive, which means transportation of materials and goods long distances will become expensive. If transportation costs go sky high, the import/export business model will no longer work. We will be forced to focus on local material and local goods. Interesting take.
Children of Men
Clive Owen - Children of Men
Children of Men - Directed by Alfonso Cuarón (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), the film seems to be shot almost entirely with a hand-held camera, and most scenes play out without any cuts (single shot sequence), so you get the feeling your walking through the events as a participant or observer. Very cool. That climactic scene at near the end looks like it's entirely one shot, no cuts, and it goes on for many minutes, all with bullets, sfx, movement, action, dialog...amazing accomplishment for a single shot...though it turns out they did use CGI to blend some cuts and elements, but still...the impact is substantial. You feel like you're right there.
Why Men Have Better Friends
Friendship between Women
A woman didn't come home one night. The next morning she told her husband that she had slept over at a friend's house. The man called his wife's 10 best friends. None of them knew anything about it.
Friendship between Men
A man didn't come home one night. The next morning he told his wife that he had slept over at a friend's house. The woman called her husband's 10 best friends, eight of which confirmed that he had slept over, and two said that he was still there.
Source - Why Men Have Better Friends
Torture and Collateral Damage - Jonathan Glover
In modern war, what is most shocking is a poor guide to what is most harmful.
~ Jonathan Glover
I read that quote by British philosopher Jonathan Glover in Sam Harris' book The End of Faith. Glover and Harris expose a moral oddity or failing. They argue that while our conscience is repelled by the torture of one person, that same conscience can somehow accept when a "precision bomb" causes "collateral damage." Yet the harm caused by the bomb is much greater than the harm caused by torture of one individual. How do we accept or discount that greater harm? Why do we focus on pain torture causes an individual? Surely, the pain, suffering (not to mention death) caused to the innocent by the anonymous bomb exceeds that of any torture chamber. Both acts are abhorrent. Why does our moral compass fail us?
Superb Celebrity Face Transplants
Photoshopped Celebrity Faces - What is wrong with this picture?
Jim Webb's State of the Union Reply - In FULL
I found Senator Jim Webb's address enthralling. Why isn't this guy running for President? Perhaps he's too smart to go after the job. Below is a link to the video and a copy of the transcript.
Senator Jim Webb's Reply to Bush's State of the Union
Why Drinking Too Much Water Is Dangerous
Drinking Too Much Water - Jennifer Strange died from drinking too much water. The fact she drank it during a contest to win a Nintendo Wii video game system -- "Hold Your Wee for a Wii" -- made her death especially tragic...and newsworthy.
How could you die from drinking water?
Basic physiology and osmosis. The kidneys can only process so much water over a given time. If you drink more water than the kidneys can process, your blood dilutes. The diluted blood creates an imbalance (more salt in the surrounding cells than in the blood). To relieve that imbalance, water from the blood starts entering the salty cells. This causes the cells to swell.
Walking Robot Powered by Wind
Walking Robot Powered by Wind - Fascinating video, it's actually a commercial for BMW, but...Wow! This contraption doesn't look like it should work. Have a look...
Walking Robot Powered by Wind
Hillbilly Vasectomy
Bill and Hillary Way Back When
Received this from a Port-a-gee from Arkansas.
After their 11th child, an Alabama couple decided that was enough as they could not afford a larger bed.
So the husband went to his veterinarian and told him that he and his cousin didn't want to have any more children.
The doctor told him that there was a procedure called a vasectomy that could fix the problem but that it was expensive. "A less costly alternative," said the doctor, "is to go home, get a cherry bomb, (fireworks are legal in Alabama) light it, put it in a beer can, then hold the can up to your ear and count to 10"
The Alabamian said to the doctor, "I may not be the smartest tool in the shed but I don't see how putting a cherry bomb in a beer can next to my ear is going to help me."
"Trust me," said the doctor.
So the man went home, lit a cherry bomb and put it in a beer can. He held the can up to his ear and began to count...
Pride and Prejudice - 2005 Version Review
I'm an unusual man, at least in one sense: I love movies adapted from Jane Austen novels.
Note, I've never actually read a Jane Austen novel.
I just like the movies...Well, most of them.
Ballet Photo Art - by Patrick McDonald
Love this Photo Art done by Patrick McDonald. Original photos by Richard Calmes. Very nice, colorfully vibrant yet soothing images.
Mediterranean Diet NOT Best for Blood Sugar Control
A new study found that a diet of "low-glycemic foods" -- such as beans, nuts, peas, lentils and pasta -- was superior to a high-cereal-fiber diet -- think pumpernickel, rye pita, quinoa, large flake oatmeal and oat bran -- when it comes to lowering blood sugar and other risk factors for heart disease in people with diabetes.
~ 'Mediterranean'-Style Diet Best for Blood Sugar Control - washingtonpost.com
It's a step in the right direction, but overlooks the obvious: people with diabetes 2 are producing insulin but many of their cells have reduced sensitivity to insulin. Without insulin sensitivity, blood glucose levels (from sugar and carbs) remain high causing all kinds of problems.
So why not simply focus on reducing carbs in diabetic 2 people? That way blood sugar doesn't elevate and their body doesn't pump out insulin, which isn't working anyway. Seems so obvious.
Heaven is Where the Police are British...
Heaven is where the police are British,
the chefs Italian,
the mechanics German,
the lovers French,
and it's all organized by the Swiss.
Hell is where the police are German,
the chefs are British,
the mechanics French,
the lovers Swiss,
and it is all organized by the Italians.
Salma Hayek and Baby Valentina
Salma Hayek and Baby Valentina - Looking gorgeous...Oh, and the baby's cute, too!
Salma Hayek and Baby Valentina
How to Train a Killer Whale
Training Whales - I found information on training a killer whales some time ago. It's a popular topic for parenting sites--and with good reason. Some of the 'lessons' we learn from training killer whales are very helpful to consider when teaching our kids.
Bridge to Terabithia - A REAL Children's Story
Bridge to Terabithia
An enemy is one whose story we have not heard.
~ Gene Knudsen Hoffman
Bridge to Terabithia - What a wonderful and deep children's story - a real children's story. I say real because the story illustrates how relationships and people change and are not set in stone. This is so refreshing.
Most kids stories -- most stories in general -- seem to follow a rigid formula where the good guys remain good, and bad guys remain bad. In contrast, in the Bridge to Terabithiam some of the bad guys (or gals) turn out to be real people; real people who changed and who turned out to have the same vulnerabilities as anyone else. Try to find that in a typical TV show, movie, or novel. So refreshing!
A Loving Husband
Received this in an email
A Loving Husband...
A man and his ever-nagging wife went on vacation to Jerusalem. While they were there, the wife passed away. The undertaker told the husband, "You can have her shipped home for $5,000, or you can bury her here, in the Holy Land, for $150." The man thought about it and told him he would just have her shipped home.
The undertaker asked, "Why would you spend $5,000 to ship your wife home, when it would be wonderful to be buried here and you would spend only $150?"
The man replied, "Long ago a man died here, was buried here, and three days later he rose from the dead. I just can't take that chance."
How Sewing Machine Works - Great Illustration
How Sewing Machine Works - I'd alway wondered. In fact, as a schoolboy, I struggled to understand the mechanism, and now, with this animated gif, I get it...I think...WAIT! There's something wrong with this picture.
Cactus Pacifier
I call this a Cactus Pacifier. God help the sick S.O.B. who came up with this idea...
Cactus Pacifier
Power Nap Basics from Sara Mednick
Perfect Power Naps - Sara Mednick, a napping specialist, offers these suggestions on taking power naps:
Power Nap Hints
- Recognize you're not being lazy; napping will make you more productive and more alert after you wake up.
- Nap in the morning or just after lunch; human circadian rhythms make late afternoons a more likely time to fall into deep (slow-wave) sleep, which will leave you groggy.
Howard Glasser - Key to a Child's Self-Esteem
Howard Glasser believes a parenting philosophy can be found in techniques used to train killer whales.
In his parenting book Transforming the Difficult Child: The Nurtured Heart Approach, Glasser describes the method used by trainers to teach Shamu to jump over a rope suspended over his tank.
How they started surprised me.
How that philosophy informs parenting is profound.
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