In the Race

Mug shot of Michael Jackson



Oh, not that type of artificial nose…too bad, Michael.

Actually, that's artificial noses for scientific purposes....to help mankind.

" Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) scientists said Monday they have moved closer to creating "artificial noses," after finding a way to mass-produce smell receptors in a laboratory.

Artificial noses could one day replace dogs that sniff out drugs and explosives, and could have numerous medical applications including identifying diseases that have distinct odors, according to Shuguang Zhang, associate director of MIT's Center for Biomedical Engineering and senior author of a study on the subject.

"Smell is perhaps one of the oldest and most primitive senses, but nobody really understands how it works," said Zhang.

"It still remains a tantalizing enigma."

In seeking to recreate smell, the MIT RealNose project seeks to recreate the most complex and least-understood of the five senses. "


Read the complete article HERE

The more we see problems creep up with our food, such as salmonella and ecoli nationally, or with the tainted milk in China, the tighter we will see our laws regarding labeling and packaging become.



The newest law is called Country-Of-Origin- Labeling (COOL) and goes into effect October 1st.  There will be some problems with the law/ multi-origin products will not be required to be labeled (example chocolate covered nuts) and neither will processed meats (Spam or chicken nuggets).  We should look for some problems to be reported in the near future while things are ironed out.

"No more wondering where your hamburger came from, or where your lettuce and tomatoes were grown: Starting this week, shoppers will see lots more foods labeled with the country of origin.

Here are some common questions as shoppers navigate the change:

Q: What does the new law require?

A: That retailers notify customers of the country of origin — including the U.S. — of raw beef, veal, lamb, pork, chicken, goat, wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish, fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables, peanuts, pecans, macadamia nuts and whole ginseng. (The aim was big agricultural commodities; ginseng was added for fear of imports masquerading as U.S.-grown.)

Q: Where will I see the country of origin?

A: Anywhere it fits. The rubber band around asparagus; the plastic wrap on ground beef; the little sticker that says "Gala" on an apple. If a food isn't normally sold in any packaging — such as a bin of fresh green beans or mushrooms — then the store must post a sign.

Q: Aren't many foods already labeled?

A: Some fresh produce already uses origin labeling as advertising. "Fresh from Florida" or "Jersey Grown" or "Vidalia Onion" tags don't have to be changed under the new rules; the shopper should realize they're all U.S. products.The COOL law mandating such labels first passed in 2002, but lobbying by grocery stores and large meatpackers led Congress to delay the U.S. Department of Agriculture from implementing it. Seafood labeling was phased in first, in 2005 — a key change given recurring safety problems with fish and shellfish from certain countries, including China.

Q: What's the biggest exception?

A: The labels aren't for processed foods, meaning no label if the food is cooked, or an ingredient in a bigger dish or otherwise substantially changed. So plain raw chicken must be labeled but not breaded chicken tenders. Raw pork chops are labeled, but not ham or bacon. Fresh or frozen peas get labeled, but not canned peas. Raw shelled pecans, but not a trail mix.

Q: What if the foods are merely mixed together?

A: They're exempt, too. So cantaloupe slices from Guatemala get labeled. Mix in some Florida watermelon chunks, and no label. Frozen peas, labeled. Frozen peas and carrots, no label. As for bagged salads, USDA considers iceberg and Romaine to be just lettuce, so that bag gets a label. Add some radicchio? No label.

Q: Must all stores comply?

A: No. Meat and seafood sold in butcher shops and fish markets are exempt.

Q: What if companies buy food from various places — beef from both U.S. and Mexican ranchers, for instance?

A: That's a bone of contention between large U.S. meat producers and smaller ranchers that produce exclusively U.S. animals. Tyson Fresh Meats, for instance, says it's too expensive to separate which of its cattle came from which country. So in a July letter to customers, Tyson said it would label all beef "Product of the U.S., Canada or Mexico." The National Farmers Union is protesting; USDA is considering the complaints.

Q: Aren't country labels on some processed foods?

A: Yes, tariff regulations have long required that a food put into consumer-ready packaging abroad be labeled as an import; that doesn't apply to bulk ingredients.

Q: When does the change take effect?

A: The law goes into effect Tuesday, although USDA won't begin fining laggards until spring. Violations can bring a $1,000 penalty. "

Read the entire article  HERE

1982: Cyanide-filled Tylenol cause multiple deaths

"Two brothers and a 12-year-old girl died in two different Cook County suburbs yesterday, poisoned by capsules of pain remedy contaminated with cyanide," reported the Syracuse Herald Journal on September 30, 1982. The Tylenol poisonings killed a total of seven people from the Chicago, Illinois area. NOTE: Although officials believed the tamperings occurred at supermarkets or drug stores, a nationwide recall of all Tylenol products was issued. Several men were arrested for the crime; however, no one was ever convicted of the killings.”


Syracuse Herald Journal, September 30, 1982  


Cyanide Found In Pain Killer; Three Dead.pdf



Daily Herald, October 1, 1982

5 Dead After Taking Tylenol Capsules Filled With Cyanide.pdf

(Continued) 5 Dead After Taking Tylenol Capsules Filled With Cyanide.pdf

I admit it.  I am not physically fit. I haven’t been for quite some time. 

But I do try.  Tae Bo  is my favorite “thing.”  (Thanks, Billy Blanks).

My dad, who this past year was critically ill, lifts heavy weights and rides a bike and snow shoes. 

He’s 84.  Until he was recently ill, he was inverting himself on some contraption as part of his weight lifting routine. 

My father-in-law, also 84, hops on a bike on a whim and will ride 40 miles.  He does 85 push-ups. 

I am hoping to be walking when I am 84.

Well, how about you?

If you are brave, check out the test. 

Or, if you are wise, check out the test.

You can do it here by clicking on the image:

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.



Click Image to go to continue at Righty Blog

• Support effective curriculum and professional development.
• Employ MAPS testing in the district.
• Encourage the appropriate use of technology in our curriculum.
• Provide assistance to struggling students.
• Understand how we measure the success of our programs.
• Determine if our graduates are prepared for school/careers beyond high school.
• Prepare students for the jobs of the future.
• Encourage creativity.
• Consider the whole child in our curriculum.
• Employ MAPS testing in the district.
• Encourage the appropriate use of technology in our curriculum.
• Provide assistance to struggling students.
• Understand how we measure the success of our programs.
• Determine if our graduates are prepared for school/careers beyond high school.
• Prepare students for the jobs of the future.
• Encourage creativity.
• Consider the whole child in our curriculum.

• Understand historical patterns in school funding and expenditures.
• Engage in planning to anticipate future financial needs and expenditures as best as possible.
• Provide useful and clear budget information to stakeholders.
• Always look for efficiency in our operations.
• Ensure effective business practices.
  
  
  

• Find new ways to communicate with all sectors of our community (parents and residents without children in the district).
• Find ways in which we can engage the community in the activities and planning in our district.
• Consider emerging ways in which we communicate with families (ie emergency notification system).
• Evaluate how parents use tools provided by the district (i.e. power school).
• Foster a welcoming environment in all our schools.

• Investigate and implement effective boardsmanship techniques.
• Commit to learning about issues and ideas.
• Establish a more effective program for board orientation.
• Establish a board retreat.

Old Goal – Replaced by Finance

Revisit Budget Process
Franklin residents expect that the school district will provide a quality education for all of its students.  They also expect that the board and the district will be good stewards of the tax dollar.  Many residents are concerned about the rising tax rate and expect the district to address their concerns.  The board wants to take a new approach towards budgeting.  It expects the administration to explore strategic abandonment of programs and budgeted items that are no longer needed. The district must look for cost savings in all areas, but place student achievement as the number one priority for new expenditures.  The board wants to have more discussions of the budget and seek community input on what non-mandated elements of the budget it will support.  Budget documents must be user-friendly and presentations must be understandable to the taxpayer.

You know you remember making them.

Have you shown your kids how to do them?

Post –it notes have made them popular again.

It’s how animations started.

Flip books!

 

Flip Book Sports




Flip Book Cut Outs

from WIRED...


"Why make a flip book? Because all animation – even stick-figure Flash animation and multilayered, highly technical 3-D effects – is built on, and can benefit from, the basics of the craft first developed by artists working at the beginning of the last century. And while fancy computer programs are nice, you can teach yourself these basics using nothing more than a pad of paper and a pen, and replay them over and over without any extra technology needed."

So what are you waiting for? 

Bring out your creative soul...visit Wired for a lesson in how to make Flip Books

HERE

Oh, my…mommy needs a cigarette break! 

Raising baby is a lonely job…all decked out in this house dress with no place to go.  The house needs to be spotless, dinner needs to be in the oven and on the table at five sharp, I need to look glamorous, and baby needs to behave.  What’s a mommy to do? 

Have another Marlboro…that’s what.

Sound familiar? 

Well, I made that up...but Marlboro evidently marketed to women back in the 50s...before they targeted men.  Just look at those sweet baby faces.  What mom wouldn't want to buy those cigarettes? 


 
Click picture to enlarge and go to webpage






Related reading...revisit:


For A Better Finish In Life

Now this is fresh…

The opinion of the Chinese on our presidential candidates and election process.

Right off the bat, you have a bookstore with three books about Barack Obama, translated into Chinese…but none on McCain…there are none translated.

With all of the turmoil in China…their people have their own world to deal with, so our election is of little importance, but they do have some views…

"At the average person’s level in China, I’ve just found [the U.S. presidential election] to be less interesting than any other thing – the Olympics, the earthquake, other things going on in China that are of huge historical importance to China itself," observed James Fallows, who’s been based here for two years writing for The Atlantic Monthly. Apart from the events he mentioned, there were also the winter storms that paralyzed half the country; the Tibet riots; torch relay protests; violence in Xinjiang; and now the melamine-tainted milk scandal. No surprise then that most Chinese have been focusing on domestic events.But, as usual when it comes to China, it’s never that simple. As we talked to people about the American election, we found varying levels of interest and curiosity.

‘It’s just for fun’


"Many people pay attention to the election but with different motivations," said Professor Jin Canrong, Associate Dean at the School of International Studies. According to Jin, interest in China is broken down into three broad categories: official (government), intellectual (academics and policy analysts), and laobaixing (ordinary people)."For intellectual communities, they want to learn something from the process and try to improve China’s approach of governance," said Jin. "But for the average people, especially young people, it’s just for fun." "It’s entertaining for an outsider," agreed Li Xin, a young woman who edits an economic magazine.

"That makes you want to watch and follow and see what’s going on next."And while the government and think tanks have a sophisticated grasp of how the U.S. election campaign works, ordinary Chinese seem bewildered by the process. "I think the election process is quite complicated with all the rules of caucuses, primaries, and the general election," said Li.Especially the election conclusion. One Chinese acquaintance told me he was stunned, when he first witnessed a presidential election after moving to the United States, to see a candidate concede defeat. "The only form of democracy we Chinese have ever seen really is what is in Taiwan," he said. "And that is completely different. The loser never just gives up."

Personality, not policy


"We noticed some differences in their policy towards China," said Jin. "For John McCain, he will pay more attention to [the] so-called military build-up of China, the religious freedoms, and Taiwan…. For Obama, we have some concern about the possible trade protectionism, some dispute around climate change, human rights, especially the human rights issue relating [to] Tibet."But because the policy differences at this stage seem minute or elusive to most Chinese, they focus instead on the candidates’ personalities.

"McCain, he’s a veteran, he’s very patriotic, and he’s 70. He’s got all this old stuff going on," said Annie Gong, a 20-year old college junior. "Obama, of course, he’s young, cute…but I think he’s kind of lacking in experience."In general, young Chinese, however, seem drawn to the Illinois senator. "I think Obama is really exciting," said Li, who is 29. "He represents the fresh face of America. The typical American dream."And in a country which counts 253 million people as internet users – more than in the United States – Obama’s internet savvy has been noted. "His team is very skillful in communicating with young people by the internet," observed Jin.But for older Chinese, Obama’s race is a stumbling block.

"I’ve been struck by how many high-level people in China are sort of thrown off their feet by the idea of a black person possibly as the president of the U.S.," said Fallows. Racism isn’t enough to explain their reaction to Obama. Throughout the Cold War, the Chinese were fed a diet of anti-capitalist propaganda, a narrative that portrayed the U.S. political and economic system as corrupt and immoral. American capitalism, according to this viewpoint, was the root of its manifold social ills: inequality, sexual immorality, urban poverty, violence, and, especially, racism. On Wednesday, one of our interns noticed that a translation of a U.S. article discussing how race could cost Obama votes was being widely circulated on some of China’s popular websites.  The fact of Obama as a U.S. presidential candidate creates anxiety for this older generation of Chinese.

"How is it possible that someone who grew up in that system can succeed?" a local Chinese journalist asked rhetorically."I think his success upsets those people’s world view – their understanding of what American society is."

The Best Science Images of 2008 have been announced by the National Science Foundation and the journal Science.  The awards are given for “images that employ modern technology to visualize complex scientific topics."

Below is an Honorable Mention photo in all its glory…





Honorable Mention, Photography: "Squid Suckers: The Little Monsters That Feed the Beast"

You can view more images from 2008, along with winners from past years at National Geographic

HERE