Oct 23, 2015
National Greasy Foods Day
Only in America do we celebrate greasy foods day. It is on
Oct. 25. This might be a good day to try something different,
like a breakfast dog, with a hotdog
topped with a fried egg, bacon, hash browns, and cheese, wrapped in bacon.
Time to think outside the box and go crazy for grease. If time
change and greasy foods are not
enough, October 25 is also Mother-in-Law day.
Visual Puzzle
This one is more simple than meets the eye, but is very
interesting about 4 minute video. LINK
Vitamin C Myth
Thought it might be worth replaying
this one as this is the beginning of the cold and
flu season.
Hundreds of studies have now concluded that vitamin C does not treat the common cold. The results of many studies of various types, involving hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have all arrived at the same conclusion - vitamin C has no effect to prevent or cure colds or cancer.
The FDA, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Dietetic Association, the Center for Human Nutrition at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Department of Health and Human Services do not recommend supplemental vitamin C for the prevention or treatment of colds. Vitamin C does have other benefits and the studies did not say vitamin C is bad for you, it just does not provide the cancer and common cold remedies claimed.
Hundreds of studies have now concluded that vitamin C does not treat the common cold. The results of many studies of various types, involving hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have all arrived at the same conclusion - vitamin C has no effect to prevent or cure colds or cancer.
The FDA, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Dietetic Association, the Center for Human Nutrition at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Department of Health and Human Services do not recommend supplemental vitamin C for the prevention or treatment of colds. Vitamin C does have other benefits and the studies did not say vitamin C is bad for you, it just does not provide the cancer and common cold remedies claimed.
Social Media Explained
Social media is now
an essential part of doing business. That does not
mean you need to be on every social media platform
to get results. Ideally, with one or two focused
networks, your message can reach your target
audience in no time.
The question is which ones to use and how to maximize your visibility.
If you are clear about your social media goals, it will not be a challenge to determine which channels would work best for your business. Thing to keep in mind when you are deciding - Where are your customers? Before you think of creating your business profile on a site, you need to think: Are my customers here? There is much variation in the demographics of social networks and you need to find out where your customers are so you can reach them effectively.
According to a Pew survey in 2015:
Twitter — news, gossip, tech updates
LinkedIn — B2B, recruitment agencies
Pinterest — Retail, DIY, culinary skills, art
YouTube — Luxury products, DIY, Home improvement, music,
Google+ — SEO, IT
The question is which ones to use and how to maximize your visibility.
If you are clear about your social media goals, it will not be a challenge to determine which channels would work best for your business. Thing to keep in mind when you are deciding - Where are your customers? Before you think of creating your business profile on a site, you need to think: Are my customers here? There is much variation in the demographics of social networks and you need to find out where your customers are so you can reach them effectively.
According to a Pew survey in 2015:
- Facebook has wide, global usage, but fewer young people are staying active.
- Instagram is a favorite among teens and young adults.
- Twitter is home to many information junkies and tech savvy people.
- LinkedIn
has higher
income, educated professionals.
- Pinterest has a user base which is 80% female dominated, most of whom have a higher income background.
- Google+ is a network with a predominantly older male user base.
- Vine is also a youth oriented platform.
- YouTube has an equal number of men and women, but men are more active users with wider preferences.
Twitter — news, gossip, tech updates
LinkedIn — B2B, recruitment agencies
Pinterest — Retail, DIY, culinary skills, art
YouTube — Luxury products, DIY, Home improvement, music,
Google+ — SEO, IT
Sushi vs. Sashimi
Sushi means 'sour rice' and does
not always feature fish.
Sashimi means 'raw' - but is not just fish.
Sashimi means 'raw' - but is not just fish.
Background Sounds
This simple site provides some
ambient sounds to soothe your soul
as you scramble around the internet.
There are also apps for iPhone
and Android to take the sound with you.
It has birds, rain, waves,
fire, thunder, and more.
Now you can think pleasant
thoughts with pleasant
sounds in the background
to keep you company as you do your work
or surf the net. Alas,
there was no bacon sizzle sound.
LINK
Scientific Proof Isn't
There is
no such thing as scientific
proof. Scientific evidence is
evidence which serves to
either support or counter a
scientific theory or
hypothesis.
Proof is incompatible with science which, by its nature should be provisional and self-correcting. Karl Popper (generally regarded as one of the greatest philosophers of science in the 20th century) once wrote that "In the empirical sciences, which alone can furnish us with information about the world we live in, proofs do not occur, if we mean by 'proof' an argument which establishes once and for ever the truth of a theory." Only Math has proofs.
Proof is incompatible with science which, by its nature should be provisional and self-correcting. Karl Popper (generally regarded as one of the greatest philosophers of science in the 20th century) once wrote that "In the empirical sciences, which alone can furnish us with information about the world we live in, proofs do not occur, if we mean by 'proof' an argument which establishes once and for ever the truth of a theory." Only Math has proofs.
Oct 16, 2015
Happy Friday
Happiness cannot be accumulated, but it can be divided.
I always try to share a slice of happiness while enjoying a Happy Friday!
I always try to share a slice of happiness while enjoying a Happy Friday!
Most Important Crops
The order varies by study, but
these are generally agreed to as the top ten crops harvested,
not by revenue. Cannabis is the top revenue producing crop and
sugar cane is the most popular.
They are, in order, Corn, Wheat, Rice, Potatoes, Cassava, Soybeans, Sweet potatoes, Sorghum, Yams, and Plantains.
They are, in order, Corn, Wheat, Rice, Potatoes, Cassava, Soybeans, Sweet potatoes, Sorghum, Yams, and Plantains.
National Hospital and Health-System Pharmacy Week
It is
celebrated Oct 20-26. Pharmacists are the unsung heroes of the
medical system. They keep doctors honest, and patients as well as
possible. They are the last stop before a patient ingests
something that can do great good or grave harm.
Laser Razor
Here is a new invention that has been a long
time coming. It was a kickstarter campaign and garnered US $4
million. The goal was $160,000. If it makes it, a whole industry
will change forever, just like it did when Gillette came up with
the disposable razor blade. This one is non-disposable and
requires a battery to operate.
Kickstarter has suspended funding because it is, “in violation of our rule requiring working prototypes of physical products that are offered as rewards.” Should be fun to watch for the next round. See for yourself at LINK.
Kickstarter has suspended funding because it is, “in violation of our rule requiring working prototypes of physical products that are offered as rewards.” Should be fun to watch for the next round. See for yourself at LINK.
Email Study Results
A recent study by USC Viterbi
School of Engineering researchers found that speed of email
responses depend on a variety of factors including age, platform,
volume, and timing.
The paper, "Evolutions of Conversations in the Age of Email Overload," was presented at the World Wide Web Conference. The paper is the largest study of email to date, measuring how the volume of incoming email affects behaviors of recipients and the length of time it takes them to reply to emails. The study was conducted in accordance with privacy standards: individuals opted in to the study, the data was anonymized, and the emails were not read by humans.
The researchers said ninety percent of people respond within a day or two of receiving an email to which they plan to respond. Half of responders will respond in just under an hour.
Age is also an indicator for email response time. Younger people reply faster, but write shorter replies. Teens were the quickest, with an email response time average of 13 minutes. Young adults aged 20-35 years responded on average of 16 minutes of receiving an email. 35 to 50 years tended to respond in 24 minutes, on average. Those over 51 years of age, on average took 47 minutes to respond.
Women typically respond four minutes longer than an email response from a man. The platform also plays a critical role: If someone is working from a laptop, on average it will take them almost twice as long to respond than if using a mobile phone.
Emails with only five words are the most common. More than half the email replies are less than 43 words, and only 30 percent of emails are longer than 100 words.
Younger users can cope with the increased email load more than older email users. When younger users become more overloaded they tend to send shorter and faster replies to cope with the increased load. On the other hand, older people respond to an increased load of emails by replying to a smaller fraction of emails.
It is no surprise that people are more active on email during the day than at night. Emails on weekends get shorter replies than weekdays. If you want a longer and perhaps more thoughtful reply, email someone in the morning. The researchers found that emails sent in the morning tend to get longer replies than those in the afternoon.
The paper, "Evolutions of Conversations in the Age of Email Overload," was presented at the World Wide Web Conference. The paper is the largest study of email to date, measuring how the volume of incoming email affects behaviors of recipients and the length of time it takes them to reply to emails. The study was conducted in accordance with privacy standards: individuals opted in to the study, the data was anonymized, and the emails were not read by humans.
The researchers said ninety percent of people respond within a day or two of receiving an email to which they plan to respond. Half of responders will respond in just under an hour.
Age is also an indicator for email response time. Younger people reply faster, but write shorter replies. Teens were the quickest, with an email response time average of 13 minutes. Young adults aged 20-35 years responded on average of 16 minutes of receiving an email. 35 to 50 years tended to respond in 24 minutes, on average. Those over 51 years of age, on average took 47 minutes to respond.
Women typically respond four minutes longer than an email response from a man. The platform also plays a critical role: If someone is working from a laptop, on average it will take them almost twice as long to respond than if using a mobile phone.
Emails with only five words are the most common. More than half the email replies are less than 43 words, and only 30 percent of emails are longer than 100 words.
Younger users can cope with the increased email load more than older email users. When younger users become more overloaded they tend to send shorter and faster replies to cope with the increased load. On the other hand, older people respond to an increased load of emails by replying to a smaller fraction of emails.
It is no surprise that people are more active on email during the day than at night. Emails on weekends get shorter replies than weekdays. If you want a longer and perhaps more thoughtful reply, email someone in the morning. The researchers found that emails sent in the morning tend to get longer replies than those in the afternoon.
Wine is Better than Exercise
A recent study found that a
glass of red wine is the equivalent to an hour at the gym. Also,
drinking red wine could help burn fat, says another study.
The health benefits of red wine have been well documented. Studies have revealed that those who drink a glass of red wine a day are less likely to develop dementia or cancer, that it is good for your heart, it is anti-aging and can regulate blood sugar.
Research conducted by the University of Alberta in Canada has found that health benefits in resveratrol, a compound found in red wine, are similar to those we get from exercise. Resveratrol was seen to improve physical performance, heart function and muscle strength in the same way as they are improved after a gym session. Other sources of resveratrol are blueberries, peanut butter, red grapes, and dark chocolate.
The health benefits of red wine have been well documented. Studies have revealed that those who drink a glass of red wine a day are less likely to develop dementia or cancer, that it is good for your heart, it is anti-aging and can regulate blood sugar.
Research conducted by the University of Alberta in Canada has found that health benefits in resveratrol, a compound found in red wine, are similar to those we get from exercise. Resveratrol was seen to improve physical performance, heart function and muscle strength in the same way as they are improved after a gym session. Other sources of resveratrol are blueberries, peanut butter, red grapes, and dark chocolate.
Segway Causes Segway
In 2010, Jimi Heselden, the
mufti-millionaire owner of the company that makes Segway motorized
scooters died in an accident while riding one of his vehicles.
He was riding a rugged country version of the two-wheeled Segway when he lost control of the machine as he traveled along a bridleway close to his estate near Boston Spa, West Yorkshire. He was found dead in a river after plunging 80 feet over a limestone cliff. The Segway was found in the river near his body, indicating that he was still riding the scooter when he drove over the cliff.
Segways are banned on British roads for safety reasons, but are legal on private land. Heselden bought the Segway company nine months earlier and planned to further develop the machine.
He was riding a rugged country version of the two-wheeled Segway when he lost control of the machine as he traveled along a bridleway close to his estate near Boston Spa, West Yorkshire. He was found dead in a river after plunging 80 feet over a limestone cliff. The Segway was found in the river near his body, indicating that he was still riding the scooter when he drove over the cliff.
Segways are banned on British roads for safety reasons, but are legal on private land. Heselden bought the Segway company nine months earlier and planned to further develop the machine.
Free Books Online
Thought I would share a few sites that
offer free books for your reading pleasure.
- http://en.childrenslibrary.org/ Find award-winning books and search by categories, make believe books, true books, and picture books
- http://www.lookybook.com/
Access children’s picture books and books about philosophy and
religion.
- http://www.bored.com/ebooks/ It has has music ebooks, cooking, over 150 philosophy titles, and over 1,000 religion titles
- http://www.ideology.us/ Works by Rene Descartes, Sigmund Freud, Karl Marx, and others.
- http://e-library.net/Religion.htm Read books about the Bible, Christian books, and more. Plays From Shakespeare to George Bernard Shaw and more contemporary playwrights.
- http://www.readbookonline.net/ Here you can read plays by Chekhov, Thomas Hardy, Ben Jonson, Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe and others.
- http://www.fiction.us/plays.htm Read Pygmalion and more.
- http://shakespeare.mit.edu/ All of Shakespeare’s comedies, tragedies, and histories
- http://vl-theatre.com/list4.shtml This site catalogs plays available in full text versions online
- http://www.publicbookshelf.com/ Romance novels, mysteries, and more
- http://www.ibdof.com/ Fantasy, graphic novels, anime, J.K. Rowling, and more
- http://www.free-online-novels.com/ Christian novels, fantasy and graphic novels, adventure books, horror books and more
- http://www.foxglove.co.uk/free_online_novels.html Free novels, satire, and short stories
- http://www.baen.com/library/ Find books by Scott Gier, Keith Laumer and others
- http://www.roadtoromance.ca/freestories.htm Books by romance novelists.
Doctor Codes
"Doctor" codes are often used in hospital
settings for announcements over a general loudspeaker or paging
system to avoid panic or endanger a patient's privacy. Most often,
"Doctor" codes take the form of "Paging Dr. _____", where the
doctor's name is a codeword for a dangerous situation or a patient
in crisis. These are used in the same way as code blue, code red,
etc., are used
Doctor Brown: To alert security staff of a threat to personnel. If a nurse or doctor is in danger from a violent patient or non-staff member, they can page Doctor Brown to their location and the security staff will rush to their aid. In some hospitals
Dr. Allcome: Serious emergency. "Doctor Allcome to Ward 5." indicates all medical staff not presently occupied are needed.
Dr. Firestone: Fire in the hospital. If a fire's location can be isolated, the location of the fire is included in the page, e.g. "Paging Dr. Firestone to 3 West" indicates "Fire in or near west stairwell/wing on third floor" (William Beaumont Hospitals, MI).
Dr. Pyro: Fire in the hospital. "Paging Dr. Pyro" indicates a fire and its origin or current location, e.g. "Paging Dr. Pyro on 3" means "Fire on third floor" (Kaiser Permanente, system-wide).
Dr. Strong: Patient needs physical assistance or physical restraint. "Paging Dr. Strong ..." indicates that any physically capable personnel (orderlies, police, security officers, etc.) in the proximity should report and be prepared either to move a patient who fell down and cannot get back up or to capture and restrain an uncooperative patient.
Doctor Brown: To alert security staff of a threat to personnel. If a nurse or doctor is in danger from a violent patient or non-staff member, they can page Doctor Brown to their location and the security staff will rush to their aid. In some hospitals
Dr. Allcome: Serious emergency. "Doctor Allcome to Ward 5." indicates all medical staff not presently occupied are needed.
Dr. Firestone: Fire in the hospital. If a fire's location can be isolated, the location of the fire is included in the page, e.g. "Paging Dr. Firestone to 3 West" indicates "Fire in or near west stairwell/wing on third floor" (William Beaumont Hospitals, MI).
Dr. Pyro: Fire in the hospital. "Paging Dr. Pyro" indicates a fire and its origin or current location, e.g. "Paging Dr. Pyro on 3" means "Fire on third floor" (Kaiser Permanente, system-wide).
Dr. Strong: Patient needs physical assistance or physical restraint. "Paging Dr. Strong ..." indicates that any physically capable personnel (orderlies, police, security officers, etc.) in the proximity should report and be prepared either to move a patient who fell down and cannot get back up or to capture and restrain an uncooperative patient.
Staying Young
It does not need to take a lot of effort.
John Morley, M.D., director of the division of geriatric medicine
at Saint Louis University outlines a ten step program to improve
quality of life as we age.
He suggests little changes that involve good eating, such as including dark chocolate in your diet, drinking wine, socializing, adding simple exercises, fidgeting in your office chair to burn calories, spending time walking from your car to the store rather than driving to find a close parking space, working in your garden, walking up stairs instead of using the elevator, or going dancing once a week. I can fidget, plus adding wine, chocolate, and dancing, how can this be bad.
He suggests little changes that involve good eating, such as including dark chocolate in your diet, drinking wine, socializing, adding simple exercises, fidgeting in your office chair to burn calories, spending time walking from your car to the store rather than driving to find a close parking space, working in your garden, walking up stairs instead of using the elevator, or going dancing once a week. I can fidget, plus adding wine, chocolate, and dancing, how can this be bad.
Oct 9, 2015
Happy Friday
Happiness is not infinite, but can be infinitely shared.
I always share my happiness infinitely while having a Happy Friday!
I always share my happiness infinitely while having a Happy Friday!
Happy Birthday Confucius
“What you do not want done to
yourself, do not do to others.” Confucius formulated the Golden Rule
2,500 years ago. This year we celebrate his birthday 9 October 2015
(Eighth Moon, Day 27).
Confucius is one of the most influential of China’s philosophers. He left a world-famous legacy of teachings and ethical principles that stress self-enlightenment through the Five Virtues of charity, justice, propriety, wisdom, and loyalty. His teachings, emphasizing proper behavior and loyalty to friends and family, shaped Chinese culture and continue to influence Japan, Korea, Vietnam and more to this day.
Confucius is one of the most influential of China’s philosophers. He left a world-famous legacy of teachings and ethical principles that stress self-enlightenment through the Five Virtues of charity, justice, propriety, wisdom, and loyalty. His teachings, emphasizing proper behavior and loyalty to friends and family, shaped Chinese culture and continue to influence Japan, Korea, Vietnam and more to this day.
International Day for Failure
October 13th is International
Day for Failure. A holiday intended for people to share stories of
failure and learn from them. The goal of the people organizing the
event is to have it be an internationally-recognized holiday by
2020. Without the possibility of failure there is no success, they
go hand-in-hand. On this day you can admit some stupidity, error
estimation, awkward moments, and other fails to the world. Facebook
has a page dedicated to it.
The holiday was created in Finland in 2010. In 2012 it expanded to over 17 different countries. You can share your failures at this LINK It will be interesting to see if their failure campaign will be a success.
The holiday was created in Finland in 2010. In 2012 it expanded to over 17 different countries. You can share your failures at this LINK It will be interesting to see if their failure campaign will be a success.
More October Holidays
On October 12 we celebrate Columbus
Day and Canadian Thanksgiving day. Of course they have nothing to do
with each other, just coincidence this year.
Nine Gartner Technology Predictions
Gartner has released
its technology predictions for the year.
By 2018, twenty percent of all business content, one in five of the documents you read, will be authored by a machine. "Robowriters" are already producing budget reports, sports, and business reports, and this trend is sneaking in without notice.
By 2018, six billion connected things will be requesting support. These non-human “things” are customers requesting services and data, and other methods of support.
By 2020, autonomous software agents outside of human control will participate in 5% of all economic transactions. Smart algorithms are already beginning to perform transactions without human help.
By 2018, more than three million workers globally will be supervised by a roboboss. "The problem with this is that robot bosses don't have human reactions," it said. "The reality is we have to see if robots can get human mannerisms right."
By 2018, twenty percent of smart buildings will have experienced digital vandalism. As buildings, both commercial and residential, get smarter and more connected, there is greater potential that these buildings can be attacked. We need to develop a way to detect and correct these intrusions.
By 2018, fifty percent of the fastest-growing companies will have less smart employees and more smart machines. Smart systems will be analyzing how a factory is being run, or deciding whether people are completing a task at an appropriate speed.
By 2018, digital assistants will recognize individuals by face and voice. Passwords are unworkable and good ones are hard to memorize. Biometrics have been around for a long time, but will get stronger.
By 2018, two million employees will be required to wear health and fitness tracking devices as a condition of employment. One benefit is that insurance costs may be lower for those companies with healthy employees. The use of such devices also raises significant issues about whether an employee keeps a job based on fitness level.
By 2020, smart agents will facilitate forty percent of mobile interactions. This is based on the belief that the world is moving to a post-app era, where assistants such as Cortana, Siri, and Google Now act as a type of universal interface.
By 2018, twenty percent of all business content, one in five of the documents you read, will be authored by a machine. "Robowriters" are already producing budget reports, sports, and business reports, and this trend is sneaking in without notice.
By 2018, six billion connected things will be requesting support. These non-human “things” are customers requesting services and data, and other methods of support.
By 2020, autonomous software agents outside of human control will participate in 5% of all economic transactions. Smart algorithms are already beginning to perform transactions without human help.
By 2018, more than three million workers globally will be supervised by a roboboss. "The problem with this is that robot bosses don't have human reactions," it said. "The reality is we have to see if robots can get human mannerisms right."
By 2018, twenty percent of smart buildings will have experienced digital vandalism. As buildings, both commercial and residential, get smarter and more connected, there is greater potential that these buildings can be attacked. We need to develop a way to detect and correct these intrusions.
By 2018, fifty percent of the fastest-growing companies will have less smart employees and more smart machines. Smart systems will be analyzing how a factory is being run, or deciding whether people are completing a task at an appropriate speed.
By 2018, digital assistants will recognize individuals by face and voice. Passwords are unworkable and good ones are hard to memorize. Biometrics have been around for a long time, but will get stronger.
By 2018, two million employees will be required to wear health and fitness tracking devices as a condition of employment. One benefit is that insurance costs may be lower for those companies with healthy employees. The use of such devices also raises significant issues about whether an employee keeps a job based on fitness level.
By 2020, smart agents will facilitate forty percent of mobile interactions. This is based on the belief that the world is moving to a post-app era, where assistants such as Cortana, Siri, and Google Now act as a type of universal interface.
Water on Mars
Came across one of my old blog posts from way
back in February 2009. It is a picture of water on Mars. How
prescient I must have been.
Happy Emergency Nurses Day
On October 14, 2015 we celebrate Emergency Nurses. Each year on the second Wednesday in October we take this day to say “thank you” to the emergency room nurses for their hard work, dedication, service, and commitment to their patients and families and their loyalty to the emergency nursing profession. National Emergency Nurses Day is part of Emergency Nurses Week. To all ED nurses, thank you and we hope you have a great day.
Selfie Mania
Taking selfies
has killed more people so far during 2015 than shark attacks (12
to 8). The majority have actually been tourists trying to take
pictures of themselves in unfamiliar places. There has also been a
noticeable increased incidence of pedestrian accidents due to
people looking down at their phone screens while attempting to
walk. I presume there is some overlap with those who also had
difficulty walking while chewing gum.
Condom Facts
For most of their history, condoms have
been used both as a method of birth control, and as a protective
measure against sexually transmitted diseases. Condoms have been
made from a variety of materials. Prior to the 19th century,
chemically treated linen and animal intestine or bladder were
used. The oldest condoms ever excavated were found in a cesspit
located in the grounds of Dudley Castle and were made from animal
membrane, the condoms dated back to as early as 1640s. Condoms
during the Renaissance were made out of intestines and bladder.
Cleaned and prepared intestine for use in glove making had been
sold commercially since at least the 13th century.
The story of the Earl of Condom, a knighted personal physician to England’s King Charles II in the mid-1600’s, who was requested to produce a method to protect the King from syphilis is completely false.
The story of the Earl of Condom, a knighted personal physician to England’s King Charles II in the mid-1600’s, who was requested to produce a method to protect the King from syphilis is completely false.
Oct 2, 2015
Happy Friday
Contentment may be the bread, but happiness is the wine of life.
I love to break bread, pour happiness, and share with friends on a Happy Friday!
I love to break bread, pour happiness, and share with friends on a Happy Friday!
World Smile Day
Today, October 2, 2015 we celebrate World
Smile Day. It is always celebrated on the first Friday in
October. Show the world a big smile and use #WorldSmileDay to
post on social media.
The idea of World Smile Day was initiated by Harvey Ball, a commercial artist from Worcester, Massachusetts. He created the Smiley Face in 1963. The World’s first World Smile Day was held in the year 1999 and has been held annually since.
After Harvey died in 2001, the “Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation” was created to honor his name and memory. The slogan of the Smile Foundation is “improving this world, one smile at a time.” The Foundation continues as the official sponsor of World Smile Day each year. Likely no coincidence this year it happens on a Happy Friday. Harvey wants us to have a ball.
The idea of World Smile Day was initiated by Harvey Ball, a commercial artist from Worcester, Massachusetts. He created the Smiley Face in 1963. The World’s first World Smile Day was held in the year 1999 and has been held annually since.
After Harvey died in 2001, the “Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation” was created to honor his name and memory. The slogan of the Smile Foundation is “improving this world, one smile at a time.” The Foundation continues as the official sponsor of World Smile Day each year. Likely no coincidence this year it happens on a Happy Friday. Harvey wants us to have a ball.
National Vodka and Golf Lovers Day
Celebrated since at least 2009, National Vodka Day on October 4, 2015 has been mentioned by Wine Enthusiast Magazine and has also been noted in news websites such as CBS. The versatile beverage accounts for about 20 to 25 per cent of spirits sold today in North America, making it the most popular libation.
Totally unrelated, but celebrated on the same day, October 4 in 2015 is National Golf Lovers Day. National Golf Lovers Day, also referred to as National Golf Day. Since 1952, the PGA has held a charitable event each year for National Golf Day, which is held on varying days within the year. We can celebrate a tipple and tip-in on the same day (and watch football).
Totally unrelated, but celebrated on the same day, October 4 in 2015 is National Golf Lovers Day. National Golf Lovers Day, also referred to as National Golf Day. Since 1952, the PGA has held a charitable event each year for National Golf Day, which is held on varying days within the year. We can celebrate a tipple and tip-in on the same day (and watch football).
Malarkey
We do not hear this word much these days, but it
certainly was versatile. Here are some synonyms: balderdash,
baloney, bilge, blah-blah, blarney, blather, blatherskite,
blither, bosh, bull [slang], bunk, bunkum, claptrap, codswallop
[British], crapola [slang], crock, drivel, drool, fiddle-faddle,
fiddlesticks, flapdoodle, folderol, folly, foolishness, garbage,
guff, hogwash, hokeypokey, hokum, hoodoo, hooey, horsefeathers
[slang], humbuggery, jazz, nonsense, muck, nuts, piffle,
poppycock, rot, rubbish, senselessness, silliness, slush,
stupidity, taradiddle, tommyrot, tosh, trash, trumpery, twaddle.
That certainly is a bunch of malarkey. Hope I did not miss
any.
Unique Honda Commercial
This is a unique commercial that I might
actually watch without changing stations or muting. It is about
all the products Honda makes and is done with paper folding.
Here is a video of how they put it together. It was done without animation, just people and paper. A fun two minutes LINK.
Here is a video of how they put it together. It was done without animation, just people and paper. A fun two minutes LINK.
Cisco Internet Predictions 2015
Each year Cisco gets its best and brightest minds together to make some predictions. The following are for the 2015 predictions.
Annual global IP (internet) traffic will surpass the zettabyte (1000 exabytes) threshold in 2016, and the two zettabyte threshold in 2019.
Global IP traffic has increased more than fivefold in the past 5 years, and will increase nearly threefold over the next 5 years. Overall, IP traffic will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23 percent to 2019.
Content delivery networks will carry 62% of Internet traffic by 2019, up from 39 percent in 2014.
Over half of all IP traffic will originate with non-PC devices by 2019, up from 40 percent in 2014.
Personal computer-originated traffic will grow at a CAGR of just 9 percent, while TVs, tablets, smartphones, and machine-to-machine (M2M) modules will have traffic growth rates of 17 percent, 65 percent, 62 percent, and 71 percent, respectively.
By 2019, Wi-Fi and mobile devices will account for 66 percent of IP traffic and wired devices will account for just 33 percent.
Global Internet traffic in 2019 will be equivalent to 64 times the volume of the entire global Internet in 2005.
The number of devices connected to IP networks will be three times the global population in 2019.
By 2019, global fixed broadband speeds will reach 43 Mbps, up from 20 Mbps in 2014.
It would take an individual over 5 million years to watch the amount of video that will cross global IP networks each month in 2019. Every second, nearly a million minutes of video content will cross the network by 2019.
Population Density
If everyone lived as densely as they do in Manhattan, the whole human race could fit in New Zealand. If everyone lived as densely as they do in Manilla, the human race could fit in Tunisia. If everyone lived as densely as they do in Canada, we would need fourteen globes to fit the human race.
Zipf's Law
During 1949, the American linguist George Zipf noticed something odd about how often people use words in a given language. He found that a small number of words are used all the time, while the vast majority are used rarely. He ranked the words in order of popularity and a striking pattern emerged. The number one ranked word was always used twice as often as the second rank word, and three times as often as the third rank, and on, into the thousands with the same frequency.
In American English text, "the" is the most frequently occurring word, and accounts for nearly 7% of all word occurrences (69,971 out of slightly over 1 million). The second-place word "of" accounts for slightly over 3.5% of words (36,411 occurrences), followed by "and" (28,852). Only 135 vocabulary items are needed to account for half the most common words used. The Zipf principle also holds true for other languages.
He did not claim to have originated it. The French stenographer Jean-Baptiste Estoup and German physicist Felix Auerbach called this a rank vs. frequency rule, and found that it could also be used to describe corporation sizes, income rankings, ranks of number of people watching the same TV channel, popularity of opening chess moves, etc.
Later dubbed Zipf's law, the rank vs. frequency rule also works if you apply it to the sizes of cities. The city with the largest population in any country is generally twice as large as the next-biggest, and so on. Zipf's law for cities has held true for every country in the world, for the past century.
It almost streamlines the Pareto Principle, which describes the 80/20 rule, such as 20% of the actions represent 80% of the consequences. Twenty percent of the customers represent eighty percent of the profits, etc. I presume 80% of you enjoy most of this stuff and 20% tolerate it, with hopes of enjoying some part.
In American English text, "the" is the most frequently occurring word, and accounts for nearly 7% of all word occurrences (69,971 out of slightly over 1 million). The second-place word "of" accounts for slightly over 3.5% of words (36,411 occurrences), followed by "and" (28,852). Only 135 vocabulary items are needed to account for half the most common words used. The Zipf principle also holds true for other languages.
He did not claim to have originated it. The French stenographer Jean-Baptiste Estoup and German physicist Felix Auerbach called this a rank vs. frequency rule, and found that it could also be used to describe corporation sizes, income rankings, ranks of number of people watching the same TV channel, popularity of opening chess moves, etc.
Later dubbed Zipf's law, the rank vs. frequency rule also works if you apply it to the sizes of cities. The city with the largest population in any country is generally twice as large as the next-biggest, and so on. Zipf's law for cities has held true for every country in the world, for the past century.
It almost streamlines the Pareto Principle, which describes the 80/20 rule, such as 20% of the actions represent 80% of the consequences. Twenty percent of the customers represent eighty percent of the profits, etc. I presume 80% of you enjoy most of this stuff and 20% tolerate it, with hopes of enjoying some part.
Chinese Glass Suspension Bridge
China's first high-altitude
suspension bridge made of GLASS opened in Hunan.
The 984 foot (300-meter) long bridge spans the gap between two cliffs at the Shiniuzhai National Geological Park in Pingjiang County. It's 590 feet (180 meters) to the ground below. The glass floor panels are 24mm (about .9 inch) thick and 25 times stronger than normal glass. Click the link to see pictures. LINK
The 984 foot (300-meter) long bridge spans the gap between two cliffs at the Shiniuzhai National Geological Park in Pingjiang County. It's 590 feet (180 meters) to the ground below. The glass floor panels are 24mm (about .9 inch) thick and 25 times stronger than normal glass. Click the link to see pictures. LINK
Moms and Dads
A word
extremely similar to “mom” occurs in almost every language on
Earth and they are surprisingly similar across nearly all of the most
commonly spoken languages. For example, if you wanted to address
your mother in Dutch you would say “moeder”, in Germany
“mutter”, in Italy “madre”. Here are a few more:
Chinese: Mãma
Hindi: Mam
Afrikaans: Ma
Swahili: Mama
French: Mère, Maman
Irish: Máthair
Italian: Madre, Mamma
Norwegian: Madre
Spanish: Madre, Mamá, Mami
Ukrainian: Mati
Romanian: Mama, Maica
Russian: Mat'
Welsh: Mam
Yiddish: Muter
The word “Papa” is present in several languages including Russian, Hindi, Spanish and English, while slight variations appear in German (Papi), Icelandic (Pabbi), Swedish (Pappa) and a number of other languages. In Turkish, Greek, Swahili, Malay and several other languages the word for dad is “Baba” or a variation of it.
It has been observed that babies, regardless of where in the world they are born, naturally learn to make the same few sounds as they begin to learn to speak. It has also been noted that during the babbling stage, babies will create what is known as “protowords” by combining combinations of consonants and vowels. These protowords are consistent across different cultures. The words babies make in this early babbling stage tend to use the softer contestants like B, P and M, often leading to the creation of otherwise non-words like baba, papa, and mama by the children.
It is theorized that since these are often the first sounds babies are able to make consistently, parents tended to use them to refer to themselves, which explains why words like “mama”, “papa,” “dada”, “tata” and “baba” are present in so many languages as a way of addressing parents.
These sounds are usually less complex to say than parent’s real names. Popular belief among many is the gibberish phrase da-da may have transposed to the use of the word Dad. Aroana tadi, Aztec tahtil, ta, Basque aita (father) and aitatxo (dad) and aitaita (grandfather), Czech, Irish and Latin daid, German Vati, Greek tata, Inca tayta, Inuit ataatak, Hungarian atya, Polish tatus, Quechua tayta, Rumanian tata, Russian dyadya, Sanskrit Tatah, Sumerian ada, Tagalog tatay, Turkish ata, Welsh tad.
Old English fæder, Proto-Germanic fader, Old Saxon fadar, Old Frisian feder, Dutch vader, Old Norse faðir, Old High German fatar, German vater, Greek pater, Latin pater, Old Persian pita. Seems children are very intelligent. They teach us to use the names they give us.
Chinese: Mãma
Hindi: Mam
Afrikaans: Ma
Swahili: Mama
French: Mère, Maman
Irish: Máthair
Italian: Madre, Mamma
Norwegian: Madre
Spanish: Madre, Mamá, Mami
Ukrainian: Mati
Romanian: Mama, Maica
Russian: Mat'
Welsh: Mam
Yiddish: Muter
The word “Papa” is present in several languages including Russian, Hindi, Spanish and English, while slight variations appear in German (Papi), Icelandic (Pabbi), Swedish (Pappa) and a number of other languages. In Turkish, Greek, Swahili, Malay and several other languages the word for dad is “Baba” or a variation of it.
It has been observed that babies, regardless of where in the world they are born, naturally learn to make the same few sounds as they begin to learn to speak. It has also been noted that during the babbling stage, babies will create what is known as “protowords” by combining combinations of consonants and vowels. These protowords are consistent across different cultures. The words babies make in this early babbling stage tend to use the softer contestants like B, P and M, often leading to the creation of otherwise non-words like baba, papa, and mama by the children.
It is theorized that since these are often the first sounds babies are able to make consistently, parents tended to use them to refer to themselves, which explains why words like “mama”, “papa,” “dada”, “tata” and “baba” are present in so many languages as a way of addressing parents.
These sounds are usually less complex to say than parent’s real names. Popular belief among many is the gibberish phrase da-da may have transposed to the use of the word Dad. Aroana tadi, Aztec tahtil, ta, Basque aita (father) and aitatxo (dad) and aitaita (grandfather), Czech, Irish and Latin daid, German Vati, Greek tata, Inca tayta, Inuit ataatak, Hungarian atya, Polish tatus, Quechua tayta, Rumanian tata, Russian dyadya, Sanskrit Tatah, Sumerian ada, Tagalog tatay, Turkish ata, Welsh tad.
Old English fæder, Proto-Germanic fader, Old Saxon fadar, Old Frisian feder, Dutch vader, Old Norse faðir, Old High German fatar, German vater, Greek pater, Latin pater, Old Persian pita. Seems children are very intelligent. They teach us to use the names they give us.
Sep 25, 2015
Happy Friday
Listen hard, speak soft, and laugh with reckless abandon.
This is always my motto, especially for enjoying a Happy Friday!
This is always my motto, especially for enjoying a Happy Friday!
Johnny Appleseed Day
On Saturday Sep 26 we celebrate the guy who introduced apple trees to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ontario, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and West Virginia. He became an American legend while still alive, due to his kind, generous ways, his leadership in conservation, and the symbolic importance he attributed to apples.
National Drink Beer Day
It is celebrated on Monday, September 28, 2015. Not to be confused with National Beer Day an unofficial holiday in the United States celebrated every year on April 7, celebrating the day in 1933, the first day in 13 years, that people could legally buy, sell, and drink beer.
The best way to celebrate Drink Beer Day is to gather a group of friends for a beer tasting at home or at your favorite pub. Be sure to check for promotions and giveaways that might be going on in your area.
The best way to celebrate Drink Beer Day is to gather a group of friends for a beer tasting at home or at your favorite pub. Be sure to check for promotions and giveaways that might be going on in your area.
What's in a Name, Starbucks
Seems
appropriate when
talking about coffee to add this tidbit from Starbucks. “The name,
inspired by
Moby Dick evoked the romance of the high seas and the seafaring
tradition of
the early coffee traders. Our mission to inspire and nurture the
human spirit.”
During 1971, when Starbucks was first coming to
be, it was
searching for a way to capture the seafaring history of coffee and
Seattle’s
strong seaport roots. The owners read old marine books. They found
a 16th
century Norse woodcut of a twin-tailed mermaid, or Siren. There
was something
about her – a seductive mystery mixed with a nautical theme that
was exactly
what the founders were looking for. The logo was designed around
her, and their
long relationship with the Siren began. Lofty goals, a mermaid,
and coffee are
all good ways to start a Friday.
Stumptown
Stumptown is one of several
nicknames for
Portland, Oregon. In the mid-19th century, the city's growth led
residents to
clear much land of trees quickly, but the tree stumps were not
immediately
removed. In some areas, there were so many stumps that people
would jump from
stump to stump in order to avoid the muddy, unpaved roads.
The nickname is used in the names of several
local
businesses, including Stumptown Coffee Roasters, an independent
coffee roaster
and retailer located in Portland; StumpTown Kilts, a maker of
men's and women's
modern kilts; Stumptown (comics), a creator-owned detective
fiction comic book
series set in Portland.
Portland-based Stumptown Coffee offers its
cold-brew coffee
on nitro at Stumptown Cafes and wholesale to businesses that it
distributes to.
It looks like a beer, has the creamy mouth feel of a stout, and is
available at
the bar.
Austin, Texas-based Cuvee Coffee Roastery’s
Black and Blue
has a cold-brewed coffee that mimics the frothiness of a Guinness
the same way
they do it in Dublin: with nitrogen. It is the first to make the
coffee
available in widget cans. When opened, these cans agitate their
contents and
produce a creamy texture in much the same way a can of Guinness
does.
In Vitro vs. In Vivo
We hear these terms in the medical
context, but they can be confusing. In vivo, (within the living)
means within the body and in vitro, (within the glass) means outside
of the body, such a test tube.
Krispy Kreme Dog
A hot dog is being offered to fans
at Wilmington Blue Rocks minor league baseball games this season.
The “Krispy Kreme Donut Dog” is placed between a glazed Krispy
Kreme donut, packed with bacon and topped with raspberry jelly.
Contact Juggling
Contact juggling is a form of object
manipulation that focuses on the movement of objects in contact
with the body. It involves the rolling of one or more objects
without releasing them into the air. It is divided into three main
techniques: Body rolling means manipulating one or more
props around the hands, arms, and other parts of the body.
Palm spinning means manipulating one or more balls in the open hand so that at least one ball is in motion. Balls may be in both hands or transferred between hands to form graceful and fluid patterns, including rotating a pyramid made of four or five balls in one hand.
Isolation refers to the manipulation of a ball so that it appears to be suspended in place, creating the effect that the ball is still while the performer moves around the ball.
I placed this three minute video link of a master juggler at the end, so you did not get distracted from the rest of the interesting tidbits above. LINK
Palm spinning means manipulating one or more balls in the open hand so that at least one ball is in motion. Balls may be in both hands or transferred between hands to form graceful and fluid patterns, including rotating a pyramid made of four or five balls in one hand.
Isolation refers to the manipulation of a ball so that it appears to be suspended in place, creating the effect that the ball is still while the performer moves around the ball.
I placed this three minute video link of a master juggler at the end, so you did not get distracted from the rest of the interesting tidbits above. LINK
Cutting Phone Lines
Seems like old wired telephones may
be going the way of the Edison light bulbs, in favor of newer
technology. AT&T and others are trying to cut the cord on the
old analog telephone system that has been used for generations,
with a coordinated campaign to change telecommunications law,
state by state.
In Illinois, the industry wants to rescind a state requirement that it maintain those copper-wire networks. In terms of just residential phone lines that use traditional telephone technology, just 1.3 million are left in Illinois today. At the same time, the number of wireless subscribers in Illinois has climbed from about 5.6 million in 2001 to about 12.8 million by the end of 2013.
Some major carriers, including AT&T, are designated in the current law as “carriers of last resort,” meaning they are obligated by law to maintain those copper analog landlines within their service areas. The companies say it is a matter of giving consumers what they want, cell phones, broadband, and other 21st-century digital options instead of keeping their capital tied up in the telecom equivalent of a horse-and-buggy system.
In 2011, Missouri eliminated its previous “carrier of last resort” obligation on carriers in St. Louis County, St. Louis, and Kansas City. In 2014, Michigan joined more than 30 other states that have passed or are considering laws that restrict state-government oversight and eliminate "carrier of last resort" mandates, effectively ending the universal-service guarantee that gives every US resident access to physical wire-line telephone service.
In Illinois, the industry wants to rescind a state requirement that it maintain those copper-wire networks. In terms of just residential phone lines that use traditional telephone technology, just 1.3 million are left in Illinois today. At the same time, the number of wireless subscribers in Illinois has climbed from about 5.6 million in 2001 to about 12.8 million by the end of 2013.
Some major carriers, including AT&T, are designated in the current law as “carriers of last resort,” meaning they are obligated by law to maintain those copper analog landlines within their service areas. The companies say it is a matter of giving consumers what they want, cell phones, broadband, and other 21st-century digital options instead of keeping their capital tied up in the telecom equivalent of a horse-and-buggy system.
In 2011, Missouri eliminated its previous “carrier of last resort” obligation on carriers in St. Louis County, St. Louis, and Kansas City. In 2014, Michigan joined more than 30 other states that have passed or are considering laws that restrict state-government oversight and eliminate "carrier of last resort" mandates, effectively ending the universal-service guarantee that gives every US resident access to physical wire-line telephone service.
Sep 18, 2015
Check My Book
Please stop by Amazon and check my latest book, Bacon Orgazmia. It will make you Happy. "Peek Inside" coming soon.
LINK
LINK
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)