Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Doom and Gloom and Progress


Things to Fear in the Future

Below is yet another email of doom and gloom which I have reproduced unedited.
Nine Things That Will Disappear In Our Lifetimes


Whether these changes are good or bad depends in part on how we adapt to them. But, ready or not, here they come.

1. The Post Office
Get ready to imagine a world without the post office. They are so deeply in financial trouble that there is probably no way to sustain it the long term. Email, Fastway, Fed Ex, and UPS have just about wiped out the minimum revenue needed to keep the post office alive. Most of your mail every day is junk mail and bills.

2.
The Cheque
Britain is already laying the groundwork to do away with cheques by 2018. It costs the financial system billions of dollars a year to process cheques. Plastic cards and online transactions will lead to the eventual demise of the cheque. This plays right into the death of the post office. If you never paid your bills by mail and never received them by mail, the post office would absolutely go out of business.

3.
The Newspaper
The younger generation simply doesn't read the newspaper. They certainly don't subscribe to a daily delivered print edition. That may go the way of deliveries from the milkman, butcher, baker and fruit and veg man. As for reading the paper online, get ready to pay for it. The rise in mobile Internet devices and e-readers has caused all the newspaper and magazine publishers to form an alliance. They have met with Apple, Amazon, and the major cell phone companies to develop a model for paid subscription services.

4.
The Book
You say you will never give up the physical book that you hold in your hand and turn the literal pages. Many said the same thing about downloading music from iTunes because they wanted hard copy CDs. When they discovered they get albums for half the price without ever leaving home to get the latest music they changed their minds. The same thing will happen with books. You can browse a bookstore online and even read a preview chapter before you buy. And the price is less than half that of a real book. Just think of the convenience! Once you start flicking your fingers on the screen instead of the book, you find that you are lost in the story, can't wait to see what happens next, and you forget that you're holding a gadget instead of a book.

5.
The Land Line Telephone
Unless you have a large family and make a lot of local calls, you don't need it anymore. Most people keep it simply because they've always had it. But you are paying double charges for that extra service. All the cell phone companies will let you call customers using the same cell provider for no charge against your minutes

6.
Music
This is one of the saddest parts of the change story. The music industry is dying a slow death. Not just because of illegal downloading. It's the lack of innovative new music being given a chance to get to the people who would like to hear it. Greed and corruption is the problem. The record labels and the radio conglomerates are simply self-destructing. Over 40% of the music purchased today is "catalogue items," meaning traditional music that the public is familiar with. Older established artists. This is also true on the live concert circuit. To explore this fascinating and disturbing topic further, check out the book, "Appetite for Self-Destruction" by Steve Knopper, and the video documentary, "Before the Music Dies."

7.
Television
Revenues to the networks are down dramatically. Not just because of the economy. Many people are watching TV and movies streamed from their computers. And they're playing games and doing lots of other things that take up the time that used to be spent watching TV. Prime time shows have degenerated down to lower than the lowest common denominator. Cable rates are skyrocketing and commercials run about every 4 minutes and 30 seconds. It's time for the cable companies to be put out of our misery. People will choose what they want to watch online and through Netflix.

8.
The "Things" That You Own
Many of the very possessions that we used to own are still in our lives, but we may not actually own them in the future. They may simply reside in "the cloud." Today your computer has a hard drive and you store your pictures, music, movies, and documents. Your software is on a CD or DVD, and you can always re-install it if need be. But all of that is changing. Apple, Microsoft, and Google are all finishing up their latest "cloud services." That means that when you turn on a computer, the Internet will be built into the operating system. So, Windows, Google, and the Mac OS will be tied straight into the Internet. If you click an icon, it will open something in the Internet cloud. If you save something, it will be saved to the cloud. And you may pay a monthly subscription fee to the cloud provider. In this virtual world, you can access your music or your books, or your whatever from any laptop or handheld device. That's the good news. But, will you actually own any of this "stuff" or will it all be able to disappear at any moment in a big "Poof?" Will most of the things in our lives be disposable and whimsical? It makes you want to run to the cupboard and pull out that photo album, grab a book from the shelf, or open up a CD case and pull out the insert.

9.
Privacy
If there ever was a concept that we can look back on nostalgically, it would be privacy. That's gone. It's been gone for a long time anyway. There are cameras on the street, in most of the buildings, and even built into your computer and cell phone. But you can be sure that 24/7, "They" know who you are and where you are, right down to the GPS coordinates, and the Google Street View. If you buy something, your habit is put into a zillion profiles, and your ads will change to reflect those habits. "They" will try to get you to buy something else. Again and again.
All we will have left that can't be changed are "Memories".

Peter’s Comment
Do we really need to be so afraid of the future?
Let’s turn the clock back a little and we’ll see that people have always been sceptical of the future.
It started when it was rumoured that a person called an inventor was working on the development of a new device that would one day be used by almost everyone throughout the world. The device, it was said, would dominate our lives. It would be known as the wheel. People feared the arrival of the wheel.
Fast forward a few centuries. Oops. Fast forward belongs to the 1970s. I want to look at the 1870s. It was rumoured in the 1870s that in the future, wheels, instead of being drawn by horses, would be propelled by a new device that would come to dominate peoples’ lives, the internal combustion engine. People feared the arrival of the engine.
About the same time it was rumoured that in the future man would be able to fly through the air on artificial wings. Man would also be able to talk to his neighbours through a wire mounted on poles, have his stomach opened for surgery without dying from infection and write letters on a writing machine while receiving light from a special globe burning invisible energy. All of these things were feared more than war, plague or poverty.
It was also rumoured that the time was fast approaching when too many people would be literate thereby leaving a shortage of servants for the wealthy. And where would the world be if slavery were abolished?
Then people feared the arrival of ships that would carry 500 people, jet-propelled flying machines that would move faster even than the speed of sound and pocket-size machines that could that could calculate mathematics. All of these things, it was feared, would lead to the destruction of moral and orderly society.
Then people feared what was termed the ‘cashless society’ in which people would no longer carry pockets full of coins and rolls of banknotes but instead would carry a piece of plastic card.
People have always resisted change. Plans for ghastly new buildings always attracted the most vehement protests; the Sydney Opera House, the Eiffel Tower, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Westminster Abbey, Auckland Skytower…
But, wait a minute! Is it not the abovementioned progress that raised man from his cave existence?
Man has always benefitted from progress.
Man will always benefit from progress.



Monday, April 23, 2012

THE MAGIC OF ONIONS

Email: Leftover Onions Are Poisonous
Email examined by David Emery, About.com Guide

Forwarded email claims that uncooked, leftover onions are 'poisonous' because they're 'a huge magnet for bacteria,' therefore especially prone to spoilage.
I have used an onion which has been left in the fridge, and sometimes I don't use a whole one at one time, so save the other half for later.
Now with this info, I have changed my mind.... will buy smaller onions in the future.
I had the wonderful privilege of touring Mullins Food Products, Makers of mayonnaise... Mullins is huge, and is owned by 11 brothers and sisters in the Mullins family. My friend, Jeanne, is the CEO.
Questions about food poisoning came up, and I wanted to share what I learned from a chemist.
The guy who gave us our tour is named Ed. He's one of the brothers Ed is a chemistry expert and is involved in developing most of the sauce formula. He's even developed sauce formula for McDonald's.
Keep in mind that Ed is a food chemistry whiz. During the tour, someone asked if we really needed to worry about mayonnaise. People are always worried that mayonnaise will spoil. Ed's answer will surprise you. Ed said that all commercially-made Mayo is completely safe.
"It doesn't even have to be refrigerated. No harm in refrigerating it, but it's not really necessary." He explained that the pH in mayonnaise is set at a point that bacteria could not survive in that environment. He then talked about the quaint essential picnic, with the bowl of potato salad sitting on the table and how everyone blames the mayonnaise when someone gets sick.
Continued below ....

No amount of onion can ever fix this young man's problems


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Ed says that when food poisoning is reported, the first thing the officials look for is when the 'victim' last ate ONIONS and where those onions came from (in the potato salad?). Ed says it's not the mayonnaise (as long as it's not homemade Mayo) that spoils in the outdoors. It's probably the onions, and if not the onions, it's the POTATOES.
He explained, onions are a huge magnet for bacteria, especially uncooked onions. You should never plan to keep a portion of a sliced onion... He says it's not even safe if you put it in a zip-lock bag and put it in your refrigerator.
It's already contaminated enough just by being cut open and out for a bit, that it can be a danger to you (and doubly watch out for those onions you put in your hotdogs at the baseball park!)
Ed says if you take the leftover onion and cook it like crazy you'll probably be okay, but if you slice that leftover onion and put on your sandwich, you're asking for trouble. Both the onions and the moist potato in a potato salad will attract and grow bacteria faster than any commercial mayonnaise will even begin to break down.
So, how's that for news? Take it for what you will. I (the author) am going to be very careful about my onions from now on. For some reason, I see a lot of credibility coming from a chemist and a company that produces millions of pounds of mayonnaise every year.

Analysis: Versions of this text have been circulating since mid-2008, with the earliest examples attributed to food writer "Zola Gorgon" (aka Sarah McCann). I have not been able to locate the exact date or venue of its original appearance.
While the article makes a valid point about the relative safety of commercially-produced mayonnaise versus the other ingredients typically found in homemade potato salad (e.g. onions and potatoes), it exaggerates the danger of keeping and using leftover raw onions.
It's not the onions; it's how you handle them
According to science writer Joe Schwarcz, onions are in no sense a "magnet for bacteria." In fact, Schwarcz writes, cut onions contain enzymes that produce sulphuric acid, which inhibits the growth of germs. Onions can become contaminated during handling, but there's nothing about them that makes them intrinsically more susceptible to bacterial growth or spoilage than any other raw vegetable.
"So unless you have sliced your onions on a contaminated cutting board, or handled them with dirty hands," Schwarcz explains, "you can safely put them in a plastic bag and store them and there will not be any bacterial contamination."
Food folklore: Onions 'attract' or 'collect' infectious bacteria
The notion that onions are a "bacteria magnet" may stem from an old wives' tale dating at least as far back as the 1500s, when it was believed that distributing raw onions around a residence guarded against the bubonic plague and other diseases by "absorbing the elements of infection." Believe it or not, though it has no scientific basis whatsoever,

Detailed Analysis

The terminology that onions are "bacterial magnets" makes no sense. No food attracts bacteria, although of course some are more likely to support bacterial multiplication once infected.
This widely circulated message claims that placing onions around a room can absorb the flu virus and thus prevent people from catching the flu and becoming ill. It tells the story of a farming family that escaped the devastating flu epidemic of 1919 supposedly by placing onions in the rooms of the farmhouse. It relates other cases in which onions supposedly prevented people from getting the flu or at least aided their recovery from illness. According to the message, onions can absorb and contain not only viruses such as those that cause flu but also bacteria that cause other types of illness. The message also claims that placing onions and garlic around rooms saved many people from getting the Black Plague.


However, there is no credible scientific evidence that supports the claims in the message. Scientists have repudiated the idea that onions can act as "magnets" that attract bacteria or viruses. In an article debunking another onion myth (which suggests that raw onions are a “magnet for bacteria” and can therefore make you ill), Dr Joe Schwarcz of McGill University's Office for Science and Society 
explains:
An article on The Chemist's Kitchen website about the humble onion's supposed propensity to attract bacteria concurs with Dr Schwarcz's view, noting:
Nothing is a bacteria magnet. Firstly, bacteria have minimal mobility. They usually travel in water droplets, if at all. Sneezes, for example. Moulds can release spores which get blown around but bacteria usually grows in moist environments and are slimy, making getting airborne difficult. Secondly, if there was such a thing as a 'bacteria magnet' it would be enormously useful in the medical field for drawing bacteria away from the ill and infirmed. Not such use has been made of onions.
And a November 2009 Wall Street Journal article about home flu cures notes:
Biologists say it's highly implausible that onions could attract flu virus as a bug zapper traps flies. Viruses require a living host to replicate and can't propel themselves out of a body and across a room.
When outside of a host, viruses are metabolically inert and cannot reproduce. While outside of host cells, they exist as a protein coat or capsid. If the virus in its inert form comes into contact with a suitable host, it can insert its genetic material into its host. Given these facts, it is stretching credibility to suggest that an onion can somehow magically draw viruses in a room into itself and safely contain them. There is no plausible scientific reason why an onion would have such properties.

As with many such circulated health tips, the message does not present any plausible evidence to back up its claims. The story of the doctor's 1919 visit to the healthy farm family's home, along with the supposed reason for their continued health, is just that - a story. No names or other references are included that would allow the veracity of the story to be checked. And the other incidents described in the message are unsubstantiated, anecdotal, and, in any case, prove nothing. The fact that a group of people - such as the staff in a hairdressing salon - did not contract flu in a particular year can not be seen as credible evidence that onions placed around the room were what stopped them from becoming ill. A cut onion left in a jar is likely to become darkened and "messy" regardless of any supposed ability to absorb germs. The pneumonia sufferer may well have began to feel better just as quickly even if no onion was in her sick room.

The myth that onions can somehow absorb the agents of disease and thereby prevent illness goes back centuries. During the dark and dreadful days of the Black Plague in the 14th century, many believed that a strategically placed onion in a dwelling could indeed ward off the plague. However, this tactic did not "save many from the black plague" as claimed in the message. In truth, onions are no more likely to attract and absorb Bubonic Plague bacteria (or the haemorrhagic fever virus that some researchers suggest may have been the real cause of the Black Death) than they are to absorb and attract more modern threats such as the H1N1 virus (swine flu). Those who lived at the time of the Black Death tended to believe that a miasma - a poisonous vapor or mist - was responsible for spreading the plague. They used many tactics to try to ward off this miasma including strong scents and even loud noises. Given the level of knowledge at the time, it is hardly surprising that people believed that a strong smelling substance such as onion might absorb this deadly miasma. These days, with our much greater understanding of bacteria and viruses and how they spread, it is considerably more surprising that some people still believe that onions can somehow magically drag the agents of disease from the air of a room and render them harmless.

While the idea that onions can attract and absorb bacteria and viruses is frankly rather silly, it should be noted that onions have long been thought to have medicinal benefits when consumed in various ways. And there may be some truth to these claims. The above mentioned Wall Street Journal article notes:
The idea that onions have medicinal properties goes back millennia and spans many cultures. Egyptians thought onions were fertility symbols. Ancient Greeks rubbed them on sore muscles, and Native Americans used them to treat coughs and colds. Herbalists note that the World Health Organization recognizes onion extracts for providing relief in the treatment of coughs, colds, asthma and bronchitis.
And a literature review about the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties of garlic and onions published in a 2007 issue of Nutrition & Food Science notes in its abstract:
Both garlic and onions exert their effects on human health via multiple different functions, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial properties. The organosulphur compounds in these spices scavenge oxidizing agents, inhibit the oxidation of fatty acids, thereby preventing the formation of pro-inflammatory messengers, and inhibit bacterial growth, via interaction with sulphur-containing enzymes.
However, the fact that onions may hold some demonstrable medicinal properties, does not in any way validate the fanciful notion that an onion can collect and store bacteria and viruses in a room.

Peter’s Comment
So why do people create and send emails that make spectacular claims? Easy! They want to track the email so they can collect and sell addresses. But to do this they have to spy on you and put harmful bugs on your computer. And here is the nasty bit. No amount of onion will then fix your computer!
So when forwarding emails, you should always remove all previous addresses after you click ‘Forward.’ By doing this you will be helping beat spies and spammers as well as protecting the privacy of others. Below is an example of how not to do it.
Friday, 20 April, 2012 3:47 PM
From:    
To:        "Brian Gullible" <briangullible@sneeze.com>, "Trevor Believer" <faithful@nonsense.co.nz>, "Elizabeth Onion" <lizonion@hotpotato.com>, and maybe dozens more addresses.

To forward an email safely your recipients should see only your address. To do this you should not put the new addresses in the ‘To’ or ‘Cc’ boxes. You should always click ‘Show Bcc’ and insert the addresses in the ‘Bcc’ box as shown below.
Insert addresses (separated by commas)Show Bcc
To:
Cc:
Bcc:
Subject: ONIONS

Finally, highlight and delete all the earlier addresses. Then when your email is received by your recipients it will look like this:

FW: Onions

From:    
To:          undisclosed-recipients


Friday, April 13, 2012

RED LIGHT CAMERAS


STOP!

Don’t Break the Law

Running traffic lights is back in the news today after a traffic engineer was fined for proceeding against a yellow light and then being interviewed on New Zealand's Television One’s Close Up.
The traffic engineer believed that she had done nothing wrong and there was some discussion as to the clarity or otherwise of the Road Code. But wait, the Road Code should not have been the document under discussion. The Road Code is only a simplified interpretation of the law and has been known in the past to be at variance with the law. The applicable law is the Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004
The rule, obviously drafted by a constipated wordiologist, states that ‘While a steady yellow signal in the form of a disc (a traffic light?) is displayed, - (a) a driver facing the signal must not enter the controlled area while the signal is displayed unless the driver’s vehicle is, when the signal first appears, so close to the controlled area that it cannot safely be stopped before entering the area.’
Similarly, the red light rule forbids a driver from entering the controlled area while facing a red light. There is no mention in this subsection of stopping safely because that option has gone and the driver (if he has complied with (a) above) is either already stopped or is committed to continuing through. The salient word in both situations is ‘entering’ rather than ‘proceeding.’ This is an important distinction but one that often escapes, innocently or deliberately, many enforcement officers. The law says a driver shall not ‘enter’ but the charge is usually worded ‘proceeding’ when it is quite clear that proceeding is often legal and in some situations may actually be obligatory in order to avoid blocking the intersection.
This takes me back to the late eighties when the then Auckland City Traffic Department had red light cameras and they booked me for proceeding against a red light. They had three beautiful colour photographs of my tour coach proceeding through the light at Grafton Bridge to prove their case. But from my interpretation of the law I believed that the photographs proved my defence. My case was that the yellow light appeared while I was too close to the intersection to safely stop and the red light appeared three seconds later after I had already entered the intersection by about two metres.
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The City Council disagreed and the case went to court where it was heard by two JPs. The JPs retired to consider their verdict saying they would be back in a couple of minutes. After thirty minutes their raised voices could be heard through the closed door. Their actual words were not distinguishable but I suspected that I had at least one person on my side. Forty minutes after retiring they came back with an incredible compromise – I was found not guilty, but I would have court costs of $65 to pay. In a way they were both winners.
But common sense told me that such a verdict was not legal but I paid the $65 and let the matter rest.
Years later, while applying for work overseas, I was asked to obtain a copy of my court record and, can you believe it, the record showed one conviction – proceeding against a red light.
I felt obliged to set the record straight. The Auckland City Council Traffic Department was long gone but the court was still there and down in the basement an obliging court officer went through the old records of the actual court proceedings. It transpired that the verdict had been illegal and the clerk who had entered the data had altered the verdict so that the computer would accept it.
So, with the help of an officer at Police Headquarters, the record was corrected and everyone lived happily ever after, except that the Department of Courts still owes me $65 plus interest from 1987.


BEYOND THE SEAS

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