Marshall Brain's Blog

Right now, Raleigh, NC doesn't really have a theme. Vegas has gambling, Orlando has its amusement parks, Washington DC has history and museums. But Raleigh isn't really known for anything. With a new civic and convention center getting ready to open, this lack of identity hurts the city.

Here are a web site and article that contemplate a new possibility. What if we turn Raleigh into the City of the Future? Find out more here:

- A rousing rethinking of Raleigh

- Raleigh - City of the Future

My daily blogging has moved to:

blogs.howstuffworks.com

My daily blogging has moved to:

Brainstuff.howstuffworks.com

After watching these videos, a question comes to mind: This is 100-year-old technology (cables and rubber bands) - Can we come up with something better? Or is this one of those things, like steering wheels, where we arrived at an optimal solution in terms of cost/reliability/functionality very quickly?

Kassam rockets have been landing in Israel this week. From a technical standpoint, these rockets are interesting because they are simply oversized "candy rockets" that model rocket enthusiasts launch all the time. To learn more about candy rockets, read this article in PopSci:

Rocket food

as well as this article:

Recrystallized Candy rocket propellant

This article provides more detail on the actual construction of Kassam rockets:

The Growing Threat of the Kassam Unguided Rockets

This week the news broke that a certain brand of pet food seems to be causing kidney failure and killing pets. Here's a typical story:

Pet owners nervous over the fallout from tainted food

It's an interesting story from several different angles. There is the emotional angle, obviously - no pet owner wants their dog or cat dying. There's the mystery angle - the fact that pets are dying and no one quite knows why. There's the branding angle - the "hey, I thought this was special!" angle - when you find out a single company manufactures the food that is labled as Iams, America's Choice, Eukanba, etc. (50 brands total). There's the animal testing angle, as exemplified by this paragraph:

That manufacturer -- Ontario, Canada-based Menu Foods -- tested its moist pet food beginning in late February, feeding the product to 40 to 50 dogs and cats after a series of complaints from pet owners. Seven of those test animals died, according to Stephen Sundlof, the Food and Drug Administration's top veterinarian.

I doubt PETA is real happy about that. It is also interesting that, apparently, the company is not testing its food on a regular basis. Doesn't it seem like you would take X samples from the assembly line every day and feed it to animals to make sure its OK? It seems like that would be part of a normal quality assurance program.

But here is the angle that amazes me - the sheer mass of this company. This single company (Ontario, Canada-based Menu Foods) is recalling 60 millions cans/pouches of pet food in this recall. According to this page, Menu Foods is "the leading North American private-label/contract manufacturer of wet pet food products sold by supermarket retailers, mass merchandisers, pet specialty retailers and other retail and wholesale outlets. Menu currently produces more than one billion containers per year." That means that they are producing nearly 3 million cans of food every day.

And then there is this: "Although Menu Foods sells its food under numerous brands, the FDA's Sundlof noted that the company's recall affects only about 1 percent of the total pet food supply." If that is true, it means that there are the equivalent of 300 million cans of dog food getting produced every day. Just think of the logistical system that handles that much pet food every day - never mind the thousands of other products that get consumed. It is amazing when you think about it...

It has been really interesting reading the back-and-forthing on this topic:

• An experiment that hints we are wrong on climate change
  
  
• Cosmic rays blamed for global warming

The thing that is most interesting about science is that we learn more every day...

This article changed the way that I look at the iPhone:

Apple's New Calling: The iPhone

As you may know, I have four kids, ages 9, 6, 4 and 4.

One of the things that I didn't really understand about kids before I became a parent is that kids ask a shocking number of questions everyday. Another thing that I didn't really understand is the fact that one of your most important jobs as a parent is taking the time to answer these questions. Because the answers you give are often helping to form your kids' view of the world. It's kind of amazing when you think about it.

Some days, however, you really have to scratch your head. Yesterday I got these three questions on the same day:

1. What is a troop? I had David and Irena in the car. We stopped at a traffic light. In front of us is a car with one of those magnetic yellow ribbon stickers and it says, "Support our troops". Obviously, if you are 6, and you are getting good at reading and you want to practice, you will read sticker and ask about troops. "What is a troop?"
   
   So, as the parent, you explain that a troop is a soldier. "What is a soldier?" Not a simple question when talking to a 6-year-old. "Well… a soldier is a person who works in the army." Leading to the obvious "What is the Army?" If you have kids you know that these questions can be endless, so as I dig deeper and deeper into this hole I end up talking about governments, nations, human anger, war, guns, bombs, death, etc. Ten minutes later we arrive at a question like, "But why would a soldier want to die?" Excellent question... It leads you to think about nationalism, pride, duty, freedom, employment, justice, genocide, testosterone, etc. "Why do we have to support our troops?" That leads to thoughts about politics, national interests, debates, terrorism, WMDs, intelligence... and that leads to questions about.... You can see that, honestly, you could spend months talking about all of the side branches to the question "What is a troop?" And the day is just getting started! Fortunately, in most situations like this, you eventually arrive at a destination and the subject changes.
   
   
2. What is an ABC store? We are running some errands, and along the way we pass an ABC store. For those who do not live in North Carolina, an ABC store is the state-run liquor store. It is the only place to buy "hard" liquor in NC, I believe. I'm not entirely sure about that because I don't drink, and therefore I have had no occasion to purchase alcohol in an ABC store, or anywhere else. Which points out another thing -- as a parent, you often realize how much you don't know.
   
   So I try to answer the question simply. "That's a store where people buy alcoholic beverages." Obviously, "What is alcohol?" is the next question. "Well.." and I answer that question. Eventually my child asks, "Do you drink alcohol?" So I answer honestly, "No, I don't". "Why not?" So I explain that as best I can. My father had a terrible time with alcohol, and I learned all I needed to know about alcohol vicariously. But how do I say that about the kids' grandfather? And the kids have never met my father, because he is dead, because of alcohol. So you work through that whole nest of emotions.
   
   Eventually the child arrives at the obvious question, "Why does anyone drink alcohol?" Think how complex that is. There are psychological reasons, social reasons, peer reasons, relaxation reasons, self-medication reasons, stupid reasons… "Can I try some alcohol?" Hmmm. "Why do they have to sell alcohol in a special store?" Hmmm. "What does 'drunk' mean?" Hmmm.
   
   You can see that there are a huge number of decisions that you are going to make as you answer a string of questions like this, and you are going to end up flavoring your answers with your world view and experiences to some degree, and your kids are going to pick up what you say and use that information in forming their own world view, to some degree. Either accepting it as truth (the predominant mode of young children) or completely rejecting it (a frequent mode of teens).
   
   Thankfully you arrive at your destination eventually...
   
   
3. So we are in bed, and I am reading the kids a book. It is a nice, quiet, safe time. We are reading the book, "The Black Stallion", which is a cool story that the kids have never heard before and they are really enjoying it. And we come upon the description of the Black Stallion's new friend, who, the book is so kind to mention, is a gelding.

"Daddy…"

"Yes my little girl."

"What is a gelding?"

...you wake up, check your email, and you get a nice note like this:

Dear Marshall,

I am an sophomore undergrad at MIT right now, and if you asked me one year ago I would tell you that I had no passion for learning. You might ask how it is I got into MIT. The answer is by rote memorization. I always knew I was smart, but all through high school and up to last semester of college, I passed with flying colors just by memorizing facts. I would sit down twelve hours before each test and simply engulf all the material taught in the past month. Ask me a couple days after the test and I would be able to recall nothing maybe becuase it was psychologoical but mostly because I just hated learning. Even at MIT this method worked for me.

However, it was last summer that I discovered your website, and you have no idea how it has changed me. I used to look at those idolized smart geniuses at MIT that everybody worshipped, and I knew that I could be one of them if I wanted to. After all, I got straight A's without going to classes and studying the night before tests. I just had no passion. The way your website explains stuff is just....indescribable. It's like you're teaching a little kid, but it's just SO clear! I can't explain why, but whenever I read stuff on your website, I become so interested in the material whether it be in physics, chemistry, astronomy, or whatever I happen to come across. It is this spark of interest that has started me on my journey of entrepreneurship. I have tons and tons of ideas, many of them aided in development by your website.

I'm no millionare yet...In fact, I'm far far far far far in debt. But, I have no doubt that one of these ideas will be golden, and I just wanted you to know how much of an impact your website has had on me. Then again, I am sure you get these all the time. "You're a great guy...You're awesome..thanks so much!...blah blah blah." Well, I hope your heart is filled with happiness cause it really is all true. Rejoice in the fact that you have changed so many lives. And, be sure that I will get back to you when I make my first million!

It is nice getting letters like this, because they are a great way to start the day. Thanks to everyone who takes the time to write.

Looking for something inspirational to read today? Try this: How to make a million dollars.

Came upon this while researching a newspaper article:

Vermont ski area for sale

...when they put their minds to it:

Whooping cranes finally whoop it up

From the article:

The whooping crane, the tallest bird in North America, whose numbers dwindled to fewer than 20 in 1941, is not only back from the brink of extinction but also thriving -- a comeback story, federal wildlife officials say, that illustrates how a coordinated conservation effort can save a species.

"The whooping crane continues to mirror the success of endangered species recovery when man sets his mind to it," said Tom Stehn, national whooping crane coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "We have come a long way, but we do have a long, long way to go."

This year, the nation's only natural wild population of whooping cranes reached a milestone. Stehn's mid-December census of the migratory crane flock at the wildlife refuge, where he is based, numbered 237. Combined with the number of birds in captivity in three special flocks raised for reintroduction to the wild and those in zoos, the crane population now numbers 518. This is the first time in more than a century that whooping cranes have numbered more than 500.

...when they work together.



Think about everything that was necessary to pull this off....

Interesting what you can fit into a watch these days:



Great watch, Awesome display!

Some of these are really useful:

Engadget How-tos

Is planet earth growing? It sounds preposterous, but watch these four videos and see what you think after you watch them:

• The earth is growing
  
  
• The moon is growing
  
  
• Europa is growing
  
  
• Mars is growing

(These are .mov files, and may take a minute to load before playing)

I don't know why this video is so interesting to me. It is a pure lecture, so it is definitely not sexy. And you definitely have to think as you watch it. But the speaker is so good at taking very complex topics and simplifying them to explain some of the reasons why we age:



You learn a lot by watching it.

This video taught me that I know absolutely nothing about mountain biking...

But also, as you are watching it, pay close attention at the 3:10 point in the video. Is that not Bigfoot?

Here is the random question for today:

Does the ear that you use when you are talking on the phone affect the way that you process what you are hearing?

If you read anything about the differences between the left and right sides of the brain, you know that they process information very differently. One side is more analytical, the other is more intuitive. In people who have had their corpus callosum surgically severed (usually people suffering from severe epileptic seizures), the differences between the two sides can be seen more clearly. (read more here)

Most of us have both halves of the brain connected normally through the corpus callosum , but when you talk on the phone, one side of the brain gets the message first, and so, you could imagine, it gets the "first crack" as processing the information. It may also get to interpret or compress the information before passing it to the other side (I don't know enough about the corpus callosum to know what happens).

Talking on the phone, and hearing audio information through one ear, is definitely not how we would normally hear things "in nature", so the question arises -- do you process the information differently when you talk on the phone with your left or right ears? Which ear is better? Is one ear better for business meetings and another for emotional situations?