Dermal Displays

I ran across something today that I think is both pretty neat and a real possibility - dermal displays. Here's a link to someone's animation of what this may look like. Within that page is the link to the actual article on the concept written by Robert A. Freitas, Jr. Interesting, too, is that this concept was first envisioned in the 1950's.

I see a lot of speculation that, one day, all our medical history will be with us at all times and usually this refers to having a chip in our body that can be scanned by some device that medical personnel would carry with them. However, the idea that nanobots or medicbots may some day traverse our bodies and report real-time information is a step further. Further still, is the idea that it can be displayed on our skin without the need for a special device.

I don't know how all this will work or how one's privacy can be maintained. Can this be hacked via some device like a biobot scanner? What if you're asleep and someone turns you on? Only time will tell. I'll admit it looks nifty and it could be a great step to longevity and healthier living as we may be able to constantly monitor our bodies display some biostats on anything that could be indicative of a serious problem - either short term or years down the road.

It may also be a detriment. Law enforcement will certainly "obtain" the right to read anyone's biostats at will. Insurance companies? You betcha. Your boss? Likely. Hackers and criminals? Absolutely. What about salesman or spammers? Maybe some sort of spam will be developed to send you specific ads for certain medicines based on what your stats say about health issues. Nanospam? I wouldn't count that out either.

Flock

This is a test post. I downloaded Flock (www.flock.com) tonight and am testing to see if the blog editor feature will allow me to post directly to my blog.

What's in a definition?

An AP sports story picked up by our local paper today is entitled "Baseball Struggling with Diversity." However, diversity, as they define it, deals only with African Americans. While Hispanics and Asians are flocking to the baseball, African-Americans are not. Therefore, since the interest of African-American youths is focusing on other sports, baseball isn't diverse enough. Forget Asians and Hispanics, diversity is defined by the number of blacks on your team; well, at least according to the AP.

Stormy News

I saw in the news that looting had broken out in Cancun after Wilma moved through. However, I didn't see any video footage on TV. There are two possible reasons for this:

1. No camera crews present, or
2. They haven't found a way to blame Bush....yet.

In related news, Spike Lee appears convinced, too, that whitey blew up the levee in New Orleans. Oddly enough, he happens to be filming a documentary about the levee breaking. Maybe he'll hire Dan Rather as a consultant to provide some "authentic" video showing someone setting the charges.

Nutjob Cynthia McKinney wants Michael Chertoff held accountable for the deaths of people in New Orleans after Katrina and arrested for negligent homicide. Someone should ask her if Bill Clinton should be with charged with the same for Somalia or the Cole or if Janet Reno should be charged with negligent homicide for Waco.

Gas

I saw that gas as low as $2.29 today in Pittsburgh and again in Carlisle. I got home and the lowest I saw is still $2.47. Gougers. It is good to see gas prices below (in some areas) pre-Katrina. Now if we can start drilling for more oil maybe someday we'll see gas prices under $2 a gallon again.

Dam It

Taunton, MA - officials fear the Whittenton Street Dam may burst. News reports say that the mayor has ordered an evacuation and the governor has activated the National Guard. Why? I thought that President Bush was supposed do all this stuff. Why isn't the federal government doing the job of local and state officials?

Today's Quote

The optimist thinks this is the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears it is true

J. Robert Oppenheimer

Bush beats Clinton, again

The COLA for Social Security next January will be 4.1%; the biggest percentage increase since 1991.

One thing I never understood and maybe I will in 31 years is people complaining that they are on a fixed income. "Fixed" means it doesn't go down, either, and with a cost of living adjustment it sounds to me like the "fixed income" description is a myth as the payments never go down and only go up. When I was recent college grad in the early 1990's, I wish I had a fixed income. In the real world, a 4.1% raise is reflective of stellar performance. Unless, of course, you're an inept CEO who sinks a company and sends 4,000 jobs overseas, then you get a seven-figure bonus.

If your COLA (raise) doesn't cover all your expenses you can do one of two things: 1) cut your expenses or 2) earn more money. Or, you can do both. Coming from someone who has never had a fixed income, I can say I have done both.

Sure, it sounds harsh but do we really need to depend on the government for everything? As for me, I am assuming I will get no Social Security and I had made that decision about nine years ago.

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra

My wife and I saw the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra tonight, featuring Richard Goode on piano. They performed four main pieces - Sinfonia in B-flat major, Op. 18 No. 2, written by J.C. Bach (notice the 'C' and not an 'S'), Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat Major, K-271 ("Jeunehomme"), written by Mozart, Overture to Fantasia by Luigi Cherubini, and Piano Concerto No. 3 in C-minor, Op. 37, by Beethoven.

We both enjoyed the concert. Although I not an aficionado I can say that I am a fan. I have several mp3's from Bach and Mozart and I have the complete Brandenburg Concertos on CD (5 is my favorite). I also have several mp3's and CD's from Copland too. Overall, I find classical music complex yet enjoyable.

Again, it was a great concert and certainly a nice night out.

Bush Beats Clinton

Yesterday we received a record 8.08 inches of rain which shattered the previous 24-hour record of 6.37 set in September, 1999. Wow. Before yesterday's storm, we were three inches below what we should be for rainfall for the year. Now, we have a surplus of five inches.

Since it really hasn't rained in the past six weeks, the Delaware River will only crest about a foot above flood stage. Last year when Ivan moved through, it crested at 12 feet above flood stage, causing massive flooding. We also had a big rainstorm in April that caused massive flooding as well.

The good news is that our house withstood this deluge. There were two problem areas that we had fixed and they held.

My Kind of Team

Now that the Red Sox are eliminated I need to find another team to root for this year. I am really a Phillies fan but I always seem to need to find another team to cheer for come October. Since rooting for the Yankees and Braves is out of the question and I can't root for the Astros because I do not like Roger Clemens, I have decided to root for the White Sox. They haven't won a World Series since 1917, so .... GO SOX GO!

'Tis the Season

Well it's early October and that means one thing - time for Xmas. I saw a commercial on TV (I was watching the Chisox-Bosox game, those if you who know me know I don't much watch TV as 99% of what's on is junk. Plus, watching TV is a waste of time; I usually end up reading when I do have it on.) for the Radio City Christmas show, which begins on November 3rd. In the retail Sector, September and October are Xmas prep months. In the advertising sector, this prep takes place in summer.

In the U.S. we have several seasons. When the new year begins it's still winter and that lasts until (at least in PA) until mid-April. Then, spring comes and that ends on Memorial Day. Summer runs Memorial Day through Labor Day. Summer has three sub-seasons: Dads and Grads which take up the first three weeks of June, then it's July 4th which only gets about two weeks. Once July 4th is done then it's back to school season which takes us to Labor Day. Then, it's fall for a few weeks until Holiday season starts on October 1st. Halloween occupies the whole month of October and I know underneath all those Halloween decorations are Xmas decorations begging to be let out. They burst out on November 1st. Once Xmas ends, winter starts, usually sometime between December 26 and January 1st. On the calendar, Xmas and Halloween take up a mere 48 hours but their respective seasons occupy almost three months. Change "Xmas" to "Holiday"and that allows for Thanksgiving to be blended into the mix. The year has become a mix of commercialized seasons with a smattering of real seasons sprinkled here and there.