Opinions + Links
Insight Links for May 25, 6:00 am
// May 25th, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Insight
- Are Bad Storms Good Long-Term News for Insurance Companies?, Team @ Freakonomics:
According to the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., there have been 1,151 tornadoes reported (though not confirmed) so far this year. By comparison, there were 1,282 tornadoes during all of last year, and a total of 1,156 in 2009. This is resulting in billions of … - I Feel Your Pain: The Empathy of Torture, a Guest Post by Jeff Mosenkis, Team @ Freakonomics:
A guest post from Jeff Mosenkis, on how empathy affects how we feel about torture. Mosenkis holds a Ph.D. in Psychology and Comparative Human Development from the University of Chicago. His research has focused on the intersections of social, cultural and organizational psychologies…. - A Bond for the Homeland – By Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Dilip Ratha, Team @ Foreign Policy:
Migrants send billions of dollars home each year; they also save a lot, too. Instead of stuffing cash under the mattress, the developing world’s diaspora could do a lot more good if they invested in their homeland. - Take Pakistan’s Nukes, Please – By Kapil Komireddi, Team @ Foreign Policy:
The Taliban’s brazen raid on a Karachi naval base shows why the Pakistani state can’t be trusted with the world’s most deadly weapons. - How I Self-Published a Book, And How You Can Too, Team @ Freakonomics:
I just self-published a book called How to Be the Luckiest Person Alive! I published it in paperback form, Kindle form, and free PDF (see directions below to get free PDF). The entire process took me three weeks. Using an established publisher would’ve taken over a year. [If you …
Foresight Links for May 23, 6:00 am
// May 23rd, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Foresight
- Sharp 33 Mega Pixel 85 Inch LCD on Dispaly, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
Japan Broadcasting Corporation (also known as NHK) together with Sharp Corporation have jointly developed an Super Hi-Vision 85-inch LCD – a next-generation television broadcast format. This is a world first for a direct-view display. - Pixar Films And Non-Human Intelligences, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
Writing for Discover’s "Science Not Fiction" blog Kyle Munkittrick reviews films made by Pixar and finds a hidden message in Pixar films about the need to respect and accept non-human intelligences. I see this message as more likely to do us a disservice than to make our future brighter. The … - Eurocopter X3 – Fastest Helicopter on the Planet?, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
Last week a new European hybrid helicopter was able to reach an almost unprecedented speed of 232 kts. (or 430 km./hr.). This demonstration indicates one more time that the future of high speed helicopters will be based upon hybrid technology…. - End Of World In 1 Billion Years?, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
Apocalypse Not Yet. You notice any new signs of the end of the world today? I have to say I got distracted and missed paying attention at the moment when it was all supposed to end. My neighborhood is quiet and peaceful. But religious belief is not the…… - College Degree 2 Decades After Total Memory Loss, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
23 years ago Su Meck lost her memories at age 22 from a head trauma. Consider Su Meck. The 45-year-old homemaker from Gaithersburg graduated Friday from Montgomery College with an associate degree in music. It’s the culmination of a life that, in mos…
Insight Links for May 19, 10:19 pm
// May 19th, 2011 // No Comments » // Opinion
- Evidence of Strategic Periodicities in Collective Conflict Dynamics, Team @ Complexity Digest 2011.08:
We analyze the timescales of conflict decision-making in a primate society. We present evidence for multiple, periodic timescales associated with social decision-making and behavioral patterns. We demonstrate the existence of periodicities that are … - This Week at War: Send in the Lawyers? – By Robert Haddick, ROBERT HADDICK @ Foreign Policy:
Why the president’s legal advisors are in no hurry to justify the bin Laden raid. - How Prevalent Is Insider Trading? And What’s to Be Done About It? A Freakonomics Quorum, Stephen J. Dubner @ Freakonomics:
As I type these words, the biggest insider-trading trial in years, that of Raj Rajaratnam, has just gone to the jury. I haven’t followed the trial too closely, but the gist is evident: the line between “insider trading” and the legitimate, if sharp-elbowed, acquisition of useful trading information is extremely blurry. This is hardly the only insider case at the moment. Preet Bharara, U.S. (Read more…) - Sean Carroll: Distant time and the hint of a multiverse, Team @ Complexity Digest 2011.09:
At TEDxCaltech, cosmologist Sean Carroll attacks — in an entertaining and thought-provoking tour through the nature of time and the universe — a deceptively simple question: Why does time exist at all? The potential answers point to a surprising v… - Revenge of the Invisible Hand – By Bruce Everett, Team @ Foreign Policy:
How the free market shaped the new geopolitics of the oil industry. - Where Are the Big-Homicide Cities?, Stephen J. Dubner @ Freakonomics:
Perhaps not where you think. A new Centers for Disease Control report is out: “Violence-Related Firearm Deaths Among Residents of Metropolitan Areas and Cities — United States, 2006-2007.”
Notable patterns by geographic region were observed. All-ages firearm homicide rates generally were higher for MSAs in the Midwest (seven of 10 above the median MSA rate of 5.4) and South (13 of 21 above the median rate) than for MSAs in the Northeast (six of seven below the median rate) and West (eight of 12 below the median rate). (Read more…)
- The Lightning Rod President – By Daniel Balint-Kurti, Team @ Foreign Policy:
Ivory Coast’s new president has made many enemies over the years. Can he bring peace? - The Recursive Mind: The Origins of Human Language, Thought, and Civilization: The Origins of Human Thought, Language, and Civilization, Team @ Complexity Digest 2011.09:
This book challenges the commonly held notion that language is what makes us uniquely human. In this compelling book, Michael Corballis argues that what distinguishes us in the animal kingdom is our capacity for recursion: the ability to embe… - Fellows Friday with Gerry Douglas, Alana Herro @ TED Blog:
Through his organization, Baobab Health, Gerry Douglas has implemented a top-of-the-line electronic medical records system in Malawi. Many health centers in the developed world have not yet achieved what Baobab has. His secret weapons? Touch screen computers, super-high usability, and low power usage, just to name a few. Interactive Fellows Friday Feature! (Read more…) - Beware online “filter bubbles”: Eli Pariser on TED.com, Team @ TED Blog:
As web companies strive to tailor their services (including news and search results) to our personal tastes, there’s a dangerous unintended consequence: We get trapped in a “filter bubble” and don’t get exposed to information that could challenge or broaden our worldview. Eli Pariser argues powerfully that this will ultimately prove to be bad for [...]
Insight Links for May 18, 6:00 am
// May 18th, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Insight
- Why Can’t You Buy a Big Bottle of Headache Pills in England?, Stephen J. Dubner @ Freakonomics:
Last time I was in London I had a headache, and went to the nearest Boots to buy something for it. In U.S. drugstores, I’m accustomed to finding half an aisle devoted to headache pills, with bottles ranging from small to very large — at least 200 pills in … - Guilty by Association – By Rachel Beitarie, Team @ Foreign Policy:
It’s not just famous artists like Ai Weiwei and Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo. In China’s ongoing crackdown against dissidents and critics, the government is on a rampage against their families, too. - Barcelona Protest Camp #acampadabcn, Chris Pinchen @ P2P Foundation:
Statement from the people who have been occupying Plaça Catalunya, Barcelona since yesterday following the marches for real democracy in 60 Spanish cities on Sunday ahead of municipal elections on May 22. A similar camp in Madrid was evicted by riot police this morning. Follow the hashtags #15M #acampadabcn #acampadasol … - Disney’s Stealthy “Seal Team Six” Trademark Move, Team @ Freakonomics:
On May 1st, Seal Team Six killed Osama bin Laden. On May 3rd, the Walt Disney Company—usually known for animated films about princesses and singing bears–applied for a trademark on the term “Seal Team Six.” The standard economic rationale for trademark law is that trademarks reduce search costs … - Details on social media and peer governance of Yemen’s young protesters, Michel Bauwens @ P2P Foundation:
Excerpt from a report by Tom Finn with interesting details: ” Rafat is the founder of the Civic Coalition of Revolutionary Youth, or CCRY, an organization born on Facebook that was set up in late March by a handful of student activists to help unite Yemen’s anti-government demonstrators. It has …
Foresight Links for May 16, 6:00 am
// May 16th, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Foresight
- Microbubbles Against Prostate Cancer, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
One problem with gene therapy is how to deliver the genes. The immune system will react to gene carrier packages, the liver potentially could filter out the gene therapy packages, and genes usually should go to only a small number of cell types and org… - X-Prize Tricorder Competition will Save Lives, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
The X PRIZE Foundation together with Qualcomm recently announced an upcoming a $10 million prize to develop a mobile solution that can diagnose patients better than or equal to a panel of board certified physicians. The challenge will be officially op… - People Marry For Political Compatibility, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
Only church attendance has a stronger role in mate choice than political leanings? Though “variety is the spice of life” and “opposites attract,” most people marry only those whose political views align with their own, according to new research from Rice University and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Political scientists found … - Modest Proposal To Expand Railroad Usage, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
When Warren Buffett decided to buy the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad my reaction was that Warren must see rail as a great Peak Oil bet. Rail is a few times more energy efficient that trucks per ton-mile. He’s certainly willing to invest … - Israel Developing “Flying Elephants”, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
According to a soon to be published article in the defensenews magazine, Israel has started working on a project known as “Flying Elephants”. The futuristic unmanned aircraft is said to be huge and slow, capable of self takeoff and landing ev…
Hindsight Links for May 13, 6:00 am
// May 13th, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Hindsight
- The Worrying Trap, Thomas J. DeLong @ HBR.org:
I come from a family of worriers. We sometimes joke that at the next family reunion we should organize the… - Somewhere To Disappear, Karen Day @ Cool Hunting:
Somewhere to Disappear directors Laure Flammarion and Arnaud Uyttenhove admitted to the packed audience at the Q&A session following the film’s NYC premiere that they initially had no real game plan when setting out to follow Magnum photographer Alec Soth, the subject of their new documentary. While there may… - Rafael Viñoly Architects, Graham Hiemstra @ Cool Hunting:
Many of today’s up-and-coming architects are eager to design buildings with a surplus of modern bells and whistles, but even a quick study on the work of esteemed architect Rafael Viñoly shows how a true understanding of a structure’s relationship to the space surrounding it will ultimately lead to… - Julien Vallée, Adrienne So @ Cool Hunting:
The work of Québec-born graphic designer Julien Vallée practically leaps off the screen, and in some cases literally, as in a paper sculpture that he did for the 2008 Illustrative Zurich Festival. Spray from a can explodes through a stark black background into a thousand primary-colored shards, for a… - Create Brand Superfans, Matthew Rhoden @ HBR.org:
This post is part of Creating a Customer-Centered Organization. Forget customer satisfaction. It’s a lagging indicator, not a leading one,…
Foresight Links for May 9, 6:00 am
// May 9th, 2011 // No Comments » // Digests, Foresight
- Justin – Humanoid Robot Catches with Two Hands, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
German researchers developed a robot that can perform complex tasks such as catching a ball in mid flight. The new robot called “Justin” is described as a two-arm-system for investigation of two handed manipulation. - First Feathered Flight for SpaceShipTwo, Team @ TFOT – The Future Of Things:
SpaceShipTwo, British billionaire Richard Branson’s spaceship and part of his commercial space venture Virgin Galactic, is now one step closer to fulfilling the dream of private manned mission to space after a successful test conducted earlier this wee… - Fatih Birol: Oil Production Already Peaked, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
Sounding very much like Ken Deffeyes on Peak Oil, Fatih Birol, chief economist of the International Energy Agency, says world oil production has already peaked. When we look at the oil markets the news is not very bright. We think that the crude oil production has already peaked in 2006. … - Common Drugs Reduce Feelings Of Unfairness?, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
An anti-anxiety drug reduces the odds people will respond to unfair treatment by trying to punish the perpetrator. [PRESS RELEASE, 4 May 2011] A new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden shows that the brain has built-in mechanisms that trigger an… - Simon Baron-Cohen Wants To Treat Empathy Deficiency, Randall Parker @ FuturePundit:
Narcissists, each of you may believe you are the greatest being on the face of the planet and a gift to the rest of us that we fail to appreciate. But Cambridge University psychology and psychiatry professor Simon Baron-Cohen wants to help you develop more empathy. Psychopaths, narcissists, and people …
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