The N&O's Under the Dome blog has a feature asking NC congressmen and women two simple questions:
1. What two things would you cut in the state budget?
2. Are there any taxes you would be in favor of increasing?
Check out their responses for entertainment value alone.
Some of my favorites:
In response to the first question . . .
"The first place you start looking is at programs you determine aren't delivering the bang for the buck," he said. "That's how you do it in business."
--Cullie Tarleton, Blowing Rock Democrat
The legislature will trim fat but "we'll be trimming plenty of muscle too, unfortunately."
--Grier Martin, Raleigh Democrat
No specifics. Making cuts will "take more of a scalpel rather than a machete."
--Ty Harrel, Raleigh Democrat
And in response to the second question . . .
"This is not a good time to raise taxes on individuals or businesses."
--Andrew Brock, Mocksville Republican
"The reason we have less money than we'd like is we're in a recession, which means people have less money."
--Paul Stam, Apex Republican
"None that I would be in favor of increasing, but I am interested in taxing the Internet sales. Maybe a cigarette tax increase." (emphasis added)
--Larry Bell, Sampson County Democrat
Jan 30, 2009
Grateful by comparison
One of the things I have learned from my self-tracking is that I feel profoundly more grateful after hearing about people in worse situations, real or fictional. For example, the movie Slumdog Millionaire certainly gave my gratitude a boost. But why should it have? I am no better or worse off; I was only reminded of how much worse off I could be. This concerns me in a number of ways.
First, why is it so hard to remember how much worse life could be? Why is it that after seeing a movie such as Slumdog Millionaire, that memory does not just stick? We can fairly easily memorize streams of meaningless numbers, so why can't we memorize feelings?
Consider the market for slum tourism; the unfortunate reality of gratitude by comparison is that we get some utility from seeing others less fortunate than ourselves.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, why does gratitude have to be by comparison? Why aren't we able to appreciate, with the same enthusiasm, the chance to be alive?
First, why is it so hard to remember how much worse life could be? Why is it that after seeing a movie such as Slumdog Millionaire, that memory does not just stick? We can fairly easily memorize streams of meaningless numbers, so why can't we memorize feelings?
Consider the market for slum tourism; the unfortunate reality of gratitude by comparison is that we get some utility from seeing others less fortunate than ourselves.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, why does gratitude have to be by comparison? Why aren't we able to appreciate, with the same enthusiasm, the chance to be alive?
Jan 29, 2009
825 billion in perspective, part II
In Part 1, I tried to give you a sense for the size of the number with examples like 825,000,000,000 drops of water filling 276 Olympic size swimming pools.
In Part 2, I ask, so what could be bought with $825,000,000,000?
Below are five possibilities, adjusted for inflation (you can check my math on these).
In Part 2, I ask, so what could be bought with $825,000,000,000?
Below are five possibilities, adjusted for inflation (you can check my math on these).
- 55 Empire State Buildings for each state
- 5 Interstate Highway Systems
- All the stock of Microsoft and Google combined, three times over
- 32 Golden Gate Bridges for each state
- An Obama-style Inauguration party every day for the next 15 years
My plans for retirement . . .
Get one of these . . .
. . . and then go live in one of these . . .
Both ideas come from PSFK. (Modular Camper and Cottage in a Day)
. . . and then go live in one of these . . .
Both ideas come from PSFK. (Modular Camper and Cottage in a Day)
Jan 28, 2009
What happens on sick days, stays on sick days
. . . unless of course you post about it on your blog.
I was at home sick yesterday, which left me with nothing better to do than get really good at . . . wait for it . . . virtual shuffleboard. (Don't laugh.)
I was at home sick yesterday, which left me with nothing better to do than get really good at . . . wait for it . . . virtual shuffleboard. (Don't laugh.)
The internet population in perspective
I linked to the top 15 countries by internet population the other day. Regular readers will know that Wehr in the World is all about keeping things in perspective. Here is a chart of the data:
I thought it would be useful to compare these numbers to the total population of the countries, as is shown in the next chart:
Or, if you prefer, by percentages:
Ladies and gentlemen, we still have a long way to go.
I thought it would be useful to compare these numbers to the total population of the countries, as is shown in the next chart:
Or, if you prefer, by percentages:
Ladies and gentlemen, we still have a long way to go.
Without your space helmet, Dave, you're going to find that rather difficult
The HAL Project is a site dedicated to 2001: A Space Odyssey's infamous robot, HAL 9000. You can download audio clips, a HAL screensaver, or an animated HAL desktop wallpaper.
Hat tip: Laughing Squid
Assorted links
1. Another case of human bias: "sharp" numbers like 367,429 are perceived as being smaller than round numbers like 367,000. (HT: The Alternate Blog)
2. Tyler Cowen's updated ethnic dining guide (impressive list of mostly D.C. area restaurants, but has some nice rules of thumb for everyone.)
3. Seth Robert's next big thing: fermented meat.
4. Economics power-couple Justin Wolfers and Betsy Stevenson find that the "happiness gap" is decreasing despite increasing income inequality. (I look forward to a post from Justin on the Freakonomics blog explaining this.)
5. "Slow innovation: Good ideas take a long time to perfect." (HT: PSFK)
2. Tyler Cowen's updated ethnic dining guide (impressive list of mostly D.C. area restaurants, but has some nice rules of thumb for everyone.)
3. Seth Robert's next big thing: fermented meat.
4. Economics power-couple Justin Wolfers and Betsy Stevenson find that the "happiness gap" is decreasing despite increasing income inequality. (I look forward to a post from Justin on the Freakonomics blog explaining this.)
5. "Slow innovation: Good ideas take a long time to perfect." (HT: PSFK)
Jan 27, 2009
Assorted visuals
1. An impressive collection of photography from Gavin Bond. (Note that some photos are not work appropriate.) (Hat tip: Change the Thought)
2. How the government dealt with past recessions. (HT: Economix)
3. Breathing Earth: a simulated real-time view of births, deaths, and CO2 emissions around the world. (HT: Infographic News)
4. A stunning promotional video for Asics using stopmotion animation (4:53). (HT: Change the Thought)
Origami In the Pursuit of Perfection from MABONA ORIGAMI on Vimeo.
2. How the government dealt with past recessions. (HT: Economix)
3. Breathing Earth: a simulated real-time view of births, deaths, and CO2 emissions around the world. (HT: Infographic News)
4. A stunning promotional video for Asics using stopmotion animation (4:53). (HT: Change the Thought)
Origami In the Pursuit of Perfection from MABONA ORIGAMI on Vimeo.
Which position is most important to a football team's success?
Salaries of NFL players serve as a rough proxy for whose talents are most scarce and most valuable to the team. Using USA Today's Salaries Database for the 2008 season, individual salaries ordered highest to lowest by position can be seen in the chart immediately below.
Hopefully this gives you a general sense of the distribution of salaries by position, but it might also help to see the average salary by position:
It should not surprise anyone that quarterbacks are the most valuable and highest paid position. It might surprise you that defensive ends claim the second slot, but considering that they have to be freakishly tall, strong, quick, and athletic, it's no wonder that they demand such a high price tag. I wish I could break these data out by specific positions (such a right defensive end or left tackle) because I am pretty sure the second highest paid position is actually the left tackle, who is assigned to protect the quarterback's blindside (of a right-handed QB).
Interestingly, wide receivers and the cornerbacks who defend them command approximately the same salary; I certainly would have expected the bigger, taller, and faster wide receivers to earn more. And safeties--who are similar to cornerbacks except that they are generally bigger and play zone rather than man-to-man coverage--earn 22% less than cornerbacks on average. It would be interesting to see if this holds up for other years.
Probably the most interesting thing to come from these data is that the median salary of running backs is less than the median salary of place kickers and punters(!). The success of a running back is largely a product of the offensive line in front of them, and even the most successful running backs will gain only 5 yards per carry on average, with the median yardage being far less. Every time a team hands the ball to the running back, they can expect 2 to 3 yards; whereas a typical quarterback is expected to gain double that through the air. But before I get too anti-running back, I should mention that low running back salaries could be an artifact of the data in that the nature of the position requires the players to be young, and younger players earn lower salaries on average.
In case you were wondering, the highest salary in football was not MVP Peyton Manning, but Super Bowl contender Ben Roethlisberger at $27.7 million. There are some other surprises in the top 25, as seen below. I am guessing performance incentives and signing bonuses played a part in some of the unexpectedly high salaries.
Hopefully this gives you a general sense of the distribution of salaries by position, but it might also help to see the average salary by position:
It should not surprise anyone that quarterbacks are the most valuable and highest paid position. It might surprise you that defensive ends claim the second slot, but considering that they have to be freakishly tall, strong, quick, and athletic, it's no wonder that they demand such a high price tag. I wish I could break these data out by specific positions (such a right defensive end or left tackle) because I am pretty sure the second highest paid position is actually the left tackle, who is assigned to protect the quarterback's blindside (of a right-handed QB).
Interestingly, wide receivers and the cornerbacks who defend them command approximately the same salary; I certainly would have expected the bigger, taller, and faster wide receivers to earn more. And safeties--who are similar to cornerbacks except that they are generally bigger and play zone rather than man-to-man coverage--earn 22% less than cornerbacks on average. It would be interesting to see if this holds up for other years.
Probably the most interesting thing to come from these data is that the median salary of running backs is less than the median salary of place kickers and punters(!). The success of a running back is largely a product of the offensive line in front of them, and even the most successful running backs will gain only 5 yards per carry on average, with the median yardage being far less. Every time a team hands the ball to the running back, they can expect 2 to 3 yards; whereas a typical quarterback is expected to gain double that through the air. But before I get too anti-running back, I should mention that low running back salaries could be an artifact of the data in that the nature of the position requires the players to be young, and younger players earn lower salaries on average.
In case you were wondering, the highest salary in football was not MVP Peyton Manning, but Super Bowl contender Ben Roethlisberger at $27.7 million. There are some other surprises in the top 25, as seen below. I am guessing performance incentives and signing bonuses played a part in some of the unexpectedly high salaries.
Two frightening pieces of news
1. Trust in the media promotes health, via Science Daily.
2. Caloric restriction may not benefit everyone, via Scientific American.
2. Caloric restriction may not benefit everyone, via Scientific American.
Jan 26, 2009
Seth Robert's theory for why self-experimentation is rare
Seth writes:
This theory would explain why quantification is more popular than experimentation:
Seth makes a great point here, but I think, depending on your metrics, quantification can also require a level of blending because you might answer things like "how did I feel today" or "how happy was I", which is harder for men to do than women. I think that both quantification and experimentation are rare because of this issue (with quantification being popular among a small group in San Francisco, but otherwise no real traction).
I would add that self-experimentation might be rare because you not only need to blend male and female tendencies, but you also need to be dorky, curious, abnormally truth-seeking, somewhat skeptical of mainstream scientific research, but not so skeptical that you don't think any good can come from your own experiments. It is a rare combination of traits that makes the propensity to self-experiment so rare.
Even among the set of people possessing the rare combination of traits, self-experimentation might be uncommon because of the daunting prospect of figuring out what to test and how to test it. I am running into this problem as I am going through the process of figuring out how to test creativity. It is rather like picking a retirement plan: so many choices, and so hard to know which one will yield the best results. For some people who would otherwise be interested in self-experimentation, this hurdle might prevent them from ever getting started (not to mention the inconvenience of forcing yourself to do things for the sake of science).
I think the need to blend male and female tendencies is the main reason [self-experimentation] is so rare. (At least publicly.) To get somewhere you really do have to make numerical measurements, enter the data, plot the data, and so on — stuff that, historically, men do far more than women. Yet to talk about your results you really do have to admit to everyone you have (or at least had) a problem, which men find much harder to do than women.
This theory would explain why quantification is more popular than experimentation:
Perhaps the reason for lack of experimentation is that with quantification alone you stay safely on the male side of things but to add experimentation (to solve a personal problem) and talk about it you have to cross over to the female side.
Seth makes a great point here, but I think, depending on your metrics, quantification can also require a level of blending because you might answer things like "how did I feel today" or "how happy was I", which is harder for men to do than women. I think that both quantification and experimentation are rare because of this issue (with quantification being popular among a small group in San Francisco, but otherwise no real traction).
I would add that self-experimentation might be rare because you not only need to blend male and female tendencies, but you also need to be dorky, curious, abnormally truth-seeking, somewhat skeptical of mainstream scientific research, but not so skeptical that you don't think any good can come from your own experiments. It is a rare combination of traits that makes the propensity to self-experiment so rare.
Even among the set of people possessing the rare combination of traits, self-experimentation might be uncommon because of the daunting prospect of figuring out what to test and how to test it. I am running into this problem as I am going through the process of figuring out how to test creativity. It is rather like picking a retirement plan: so many choices, and so hard to know which one will yield the best results. For some people who would otherwise be interested in self-experimentation, this hurdle might prevent them from ever getting started (not to mention the inconvenience of forcing yourself to do things for the sake of science).
Outsourcing fast food orders
WRAL reports that a Charlotte Jack-in-the-Box is experimenting with handling drive-through orders via a Texas call center. Unfortunately, the company spokesperson is not releasing results of the experiment. My question is why isn't this already being done?
On the plus side, the restaurant can find cheaper labor with perhaps even better English; or, the restaurant can match non-English speaking customers with an appropriate representative. With people specializing in handling orders, it could improve speed and efficiency. To the phone reps benefit, they could conceivably take calls in their pajamas from home.
On the negative side, it might dissatisfy the "buy American" and "buy local" crowds, but history has proven that this movement is mostly just talk; people generally prefer lower prices to local products. Besides, as the article mentions, most customers probably won't even realize that their order is being handled by someone in another city or country.
So long as there are no technical issues and the service can produce cost savings, it makes perfect sense to me. So why isn't it being done?
On the plus side, the restaurant can find cheaper labor with perhaps even better English; or, the restaurant can match non-English speaking customers with an appropriate representative. With people specializing in handling orders, it could improve speed and efficiency. To the phone reps benefit, they could conceivably take calls in their pajamas from home.
On the negative side, it might dissatisfy the "buy American" and "buy local" crowds, but history has proven that this movement is mostly just talk; people generally prefer lower prices to local products. Besides, as the article mentions, most customers probably won't even realize that their order is being handled by someone in another city or country.
So long as there are no technical issues and the service can produce cost savings, it makes perfect sense to me. So why isn't it being done?
Jan 24, 2009
Assorted links
1. Scientific evidence that women don't know what they want
2. Internet population passes one billion; Top 15 countries
3. 260,000 pounds of garbage from the inauguration (for those keeping score at home, that's .14 pounds of garbage per person)
4. Beatles songs ranked; Tyler Cowen disagrees with some of their choices, but I was delighted to see A Day in the Life get proper recognition.
5. And finally, a Cadbury commercial from the UK makes strong use of electro-funk music: (Hat tip: PSFK)
2. Internet population passes one billion; Top 15 countries
3. 260,000 pounds of garbage from the inauguration (for those keeping score at home, that's .14 pounds of garbage per person)
4. Beatles songs ranked; Tyler Cowen disagrees with some of their choices, but I was delighted to see A Day in the Life get proper recognition.
5. And finally, a Cadbury commercial from the UK makes strong use of electro-funk music: (Hat tip: PSFK)
Jan 23, 2009
Dan Ariely at FORA.tv
From this 20 minute presentation from December 2008 {embedded below}, Duke Behavioral Economist Dan Ariely demonstrates how people are oftentimes systematically irrational. Although some of the examples might seem trivial, all have serious implications.
I would recommend the video to economists and non-economists alike: non-economists can learn about some of the very serious mistakes we are prone to making, and economists can learn how to present this important information in a much more entertaining and accessible way. However, if you have already read Predictably Irrational, there is nothing new here.
I would recommend the video to economists and non-economists alike: non-economists can learn about some of the very serious mistakes we are prone to making, and economists can learn how to present this important information in a much more entertaining and accessible way. However, if you have already read Predictably Irrational, there is nothing new here.
Misery to be thankful for
Interestingly, there are a few cases where an individual's biological misery may benefit society as a whole.
What are your thoughts?
- Because of jealousy, individuals work harder to try to keep up with (or exceed) the Joneses, ultimately benefiting society by providing more goods and services at lower costs.
- Because of loneliness, individuals are pushed to communicate, and communication is what drives creativity and innovation.
- Similarly, because of boredom, individuals are pushed to do (learn) something new, leading to communication and/or innovation.
- Because of pain in pregnancy and child birth, women are strongly discouraged from having unwanted children. If child birth were a simple, painless process, children would be in abundant supply and thus treated with much less care. One could imagine that if child birth were simple enough, children might even be commodified.
What are your thoughts?
Jan 22, 2009
Odds of dying: visualization plus rant
I nearly combined this with a couple of other visuals, but I thought this deserved its own post. (HT: Simple Complexity)
Huh? No shark attacks?
The statistics come from the National Safety Council. For a more in depth table of death probabilities, go here.
If the numbers from the chart are correct, the total probability of dying from one of these 23 events is only 42%. Can that be right? That's hard to believe.
Assuming the numbers are correct for a moment, consider this:
The probability of dying from the 19 events up to motor vehicle accidents (that is, fireworks discharge up to suicide) is just 2.1%. Add in motor vehicle accidents and the probability jumps to 3.3%, which is still less than the probability of dying from a stroke, 4.2%. But clearly, our biggest fear should be cancer and heart disease -- 14% and 20%, respectively.
This is one area where our irrationality does us a big disservice. For whatever reason [insert your favorite evolutionary theory here], we are much more afraid of things over which we have no control, or things that ill-intentioned people could do to us. As a result, the things we choose to hear about--and the media are happy to provide--are those things which we fear (plane crashes, fires, murders). Most of us understand that these events are actually fairly unlikely, but even the most cunning struggle to prevent these news reports from seeping into their mental models. The result is that almost everyone's probabilities are biased.
Sadder still is that the things most likely to kill us are, for the most part, under our control. Our greatest fear should be the food we eat! Yet for some reason, many people treat their foods like their television stations: which one will bring the most pleasure. I would love to know how much the average person reads or researchers about healthy eating. Whatever it is, I would be willing to bet it is nowhere near the amount of time spent consuming news about plane crashes, fires, and murders.
Huh? No shark attacks?
The statistics come from the National Safety Council. For a more in depth table of death probabilities, go here.
If the numbers from the chart are correct, the total probability of dying from one of these 23 events is only 42%. Can that be right? That's hard to believe.
Assuming the numbers are correct for a moment, consider this:
The probability of dying from the 19 events up to motor vehicle accidents (that is, fireworks discharge up to suicide) is just 2.1%. Add in motor vehicle accidents and the probability jumps to 3.3%, which is still less than the probability of dying from a stroke, 4.2%. But clearly, our biggest fear should be cancer and heart disease -- 14% and 20%, respectively.
This is one area where our irrationality does us a big disservice. For whatever reason [insert your favorite evolutionary theory here], we are much more afraid of things over which we have no control, or things that ill-intentioned people could do to us. As a result, the things we choose to hear about--and the media are happy to provide--are those things which we fear (plane crashes, fires, murders). Most of us understand that these events are actually fairly unlikely, but even the most cunning struggle to prevent these news reports from seeping into their mental models. The result is that almost everyone's probabilities are biased.
Sadder still is that the things most likely to kill us are, for the most part, under our control. Our greatest fear should be the food we eat! Yet for some reason, many people treat their foods like their television stations: which one will bring the most pleasure. I would love to know how much the average person reads or researchers about healthy eating. Whatever it is, I would be willing to bet it is nowhere near the amount of time spent consuming news about plane crashes, fires, and murders.
Jan 21, 2009
Tracking myself
I have been tracking myself since last September (about 4 months), and it is still a work in progress. I do it for many reasons: monitoring health, discovering how different factors influence my quality of life, aiding memory, feeding personal curiosity, and just for the joy of having a big juicy data set (I'm part statistician, after all).
I have a Google Docs spreadsheet that I fill out at the end of each day. It has one worksheet for 35 quantitative ratings, and another worksheet for notes about the day, happenings in my life, and important things I learned (kind of like a diary, but I don't like to call it that). In the same worksheet, I write down a couple of things that I am most thankful for, as well as a vision for where I would like to be should my life go as planned. In all, it takes between 10 and 15 minutes to fill out each night, and I find that the value in reflecting on these things alone is well worth the time investment.
The current quantitative metrics are the following:
In addition to the above, I collect the following data:
I ran a regression on the data from 2008 and found that the two factors that most strongly correlate with my overall satisfaction were (1) creativity and (2) enjoyment of my girlfriend (both strong, statistically significant effects). I also found that, while sleep and aerobic quality are both important factors influencing wakefulness, sleep is more important; and wakefulness strongly correlates with work productivity.
Soon, I hope to get more into self-experimentation. There are a number of factors I can systematically vary to see what effects they have on my quality of life. I am particularly interested in finding out when I am most creative. More on that in a later post.
So there you have it. Though I am still new at self-tracking, I would recommend it to anyone. It consumes only 1.5% of my waking hours, and generates a wealth of benefits.
Update 11/09: The evolution of tracking myself
I have a Google Docs spreadsheet that I fill out at the end of each day. It has one worksheet for 35 quantitative ratings, and another worksheet for notes about the day, happenings in my life, and important things I learned (kind of like a diary, but I don't like to call it that). In the same worksheet, I write down a couple of things that I am most thankful for, as well as a vision for where I would like to be should my life go as planned. In all, it takes between 10 and 15 minutes to fill out each night, and I find that the value in reflecting on these things alone is well worth the time investment.
The current quantitative metrics are the following:
- Unhappy --> Happy (with 2.5 being unhappy, 5 being neither unhappy nor happy, and 7.5 being happy)
- Irritable -- > Serene
- Passive --> Assertive
- Tense --> Relaxed
- Ungrateful --> Grateful
- Work satisfaction
- Home satisfaction
- Overall satisfaction
- Creativity
- Food healthiness
- Workload
- Work productivity
- Non-work productivity
- My dog's behavior
- Enjoyment of my dog
- Total hours with my girlfriend
- Quality hours with my girlfriend (quality meaning at least partially concentrating on each other)
- Enjoyment of my girlfriend
- Wakefulness/energy
- Hours of sleep yesterday
- Time out of bed
- Aerobic minutes
- Aerobic quality
- Mindfulness
- Minutes meditation
- Total hours outside
- Hours in a natural setting
- Hours spent standing
- Hours spent talking
- Free personal hours
- Blogging hours
- Blogging quality
- Music listening hours
- Music enjoyment
- Time it took to fill out these ratings (because time is scarce, you know)
In addition to the above, I collect the following data:
- I sporadically record my weight, water percentage, body fat percentage, and blood pressure.
- I use RescueTime to track the time I spend on the computer.
- I use a Garmin Forerunner 301 to track a sample of car trips, walks, and aerobic activities. It collects distance, speed, heart rate, location, elevation, and other data.
- I mark the days in which I fail to achieve one of my 23 self-improvement goals (such as read a book for at least 30 minutes a day, or floss at least twice a week). More on that in a later post.
- I use Mint to track financial data such as credit card transactions and investment performance.
I ran a regression on the data from 2008 and found that the two factors that most strongly correlate with my overall satisfaction were (1) creativity and (2) enjoyment of my girlfriend (both strong, statistically significant effects). I also found that, while sleep and aerobic quality are both important factors influencing wakefulness, sleep is more important; and wakefulness strongly correlates with work productivity.
Soon, I hope to get more into self-experimentation. There are a number of factors I can systematically vary to see what effects they have on my quality of life. I am particularly interested in finding out when I am most creative. More on that in a later post.
So there you have it. Though I am still new at self-tracking, I would recommend it to anyone. It consumes only 1.5% of my waking hours, and generates a wealth of benefits.
Update 11/09: The evolution of tracking myself
Duke Gardens with snow
It was a beautiful day in Durham yesterday with lots of people out sledding or taking pictures of the rare white stuff. My pictures are below, and larger images are available here.
Jan 20, 2009
Two unique ways of viewing the inauguration part II
I posted earlier about two interesting ways of viewing the inauguration: (1) via photosynth, and (2) via satellite.
To see the photosynth view from the crowd, go to CNN's "the moment" page.
And for more satellite images like the one below, go to Geo-Eye.
To see the photosynth view from the crowd, go to CNN's "the moment" page.
And for more satellite images like the one below, go to Geo-Eye.
A quick reminder that most of the world is in the Oceans
. . . because it is often easy to forget when all we hear about is what's happening in the human world.
Today, TED released a new talk from Oceanographer David Gallo. The video is 10 minutes long and it is embedded as the second video below. The reason why I embedded it as the second video, and not first, is because if you haven't already seen the David Gallo talk from 1998, you simply must:
The deep oceans: A ribbon of life. Filmed Feb 1998, posted Sep 2008 (13:20)
New eyes on the wonder of the oceans. Filmed Feb 2008, posted Jan 2009 (10:16)
Underwater astonishments. Filmed Mar 2007, posted Jan 2008 (5:28)
Today, TED released a new talk from Oceanographer David Gallo. The video is 10 minutes long and it is embedded as the second video below. The reason why I embedded it as the second video, and not first, is because if you haven't already seen the David Gallo talk from 1998, you simply must:
The deep oceans: A ribbon of life. Filmed Feb 1998, posted Sep 2008 (13:20)
New eyes on the wonder of the oceans. Filmed Feb 2008, posted Jan 2009 (10:16)
Underwater astonishments. Filmed Mar 2007, posted Jan 2008 (5:28)
10 questions to measure your loneliness
I scored a 19 -- about average.
This post was inspired by the very informative bloggingheads.tv video embedded below with Kerry Howley from Reason Magazine and John Cacioppo from the University of Chicago. I would especially recommend skipping to 19:39 to hear about the benefits of loneliness, and to 25:52 to hear about loneliness in America over time.
This post was inspired by the very informative bloggingheads.tv video embedded below with Kerry Howley from Reason Magazine and John Cacioppo from the University of Chicago. I would especially recommend skipping to 19:39 to hear about the benefits of loneliness, and to 25:52 to hear about loneliness in America over time.
Jan 19, 2009
Two unique ways of viewing the inauguration
1. Via Photosynth (HT: TED Blog)
"We'll take your photos from every angle, combine them with CNN's professional shots, and produce what we hope will be an amazing experience that will be shown live on CNN. And you thought the Jessica Yellin hologram was cool! The synth will also be available for everyone to see on CNN.com."2. Via Satellite. I will post the image when it is released.
Nielsen ratings for Presidential inaugurations since Nixon
Data from the Nielsen Wire.
I am guessing Nixon will go down in history as being the only president to have higher ratings for their second inauguration.
Two interesting new things from Google
1. New Google Earth ocean imagery via Google Earth Blog.
On a related note, an article from CNET last April mentions the possibility of a tool called Google Ocean that would map the oceans in 3D. (HT: Digital Earth Blog)
2. Google has a new experiment called Preferred Sites that allows you to personalize a search by giving preference to sites you specify. (More from Google Operating System.)
On a related note, an article from CNET last April mentions the possibility of a tool called Google Ocean that would map the oceans in 3D. (HT: Digital Earth Blog)
2. Google has a new experiment called Preferred Sites that allows you to personalize a search by giving preference to sites you specify. (More from Google Operating System.)
Jan 18, 2009
825 billion in perspective
825,000,000,000 is so large a number that our minds struggle to comprehend the size. Without a calculator, try answering the following questions:
Now, what could you buy with $825,000,000,000?
- If you spent $1 every second, how many years would it take to spend $825,000,000,000?
- 825,000,000,000 drops of water would fill how many Olympic size swimming pools?
- The area of 825,000,000,000 dollar bills is equivalent to how many football fields?
- 825,000,000,000 dollar bills laid end to end would wrap around the equator how many times?
Now, what could you buy with $825,000,000,000?
Jan 16, 2009
Moore's Law for the internet
"Originally, Moore’s Law described the number of transistors that can fit on an integrated circuit, which doubles approximately every 18 months. Now, a team of researchers from China has discovered that Moore’s Law can also describe the growth of the Internet. In a recent study, the researchers have predicted that the Internet will double in size every 5.32 years."
via PhysOrg.
via PhysOrg.
Testosterone and money: a chart
From The Economist:
High levels of the hormone during pregnancy causes the ring (or fourth) finger to grow longer than the index (or second) finger, both of which were measured on the right hand of 44 traders. [...] Even accounting for experience, men with the longest ring fingers earned far more than those with more evenly matched fingers. They also stayed in the business for longer.
The best data visualizations I have ever seen
It takes a special effort for a data visualization to give me chills, but Britain from Above does it.
Mapping phone and internet use
The constellations of Britain
The market for taxis in London
Flight patterns over Britain
Ships crossing the English Channel
Wind patterns over Britain (skip to the 55 second mark for the visualization)
Mapping phone and internet use
The constellations of Britain
The market for taxis in London
Flight patterns over Britain
Ships crossing the English Channel
Wind patterns over Britain (skip to the 55 second mark for the visualization)
Jan 15, 2009
Month 1 blogging in review
In my first month of blogging, I published 90 posts and drafted 39 more. There were 505 visits from 31 countries, including 412 visits from 35 states. There was a particularly nice turnout from the creative epicenters of California, as seen below. I set up 5 different web analytic programs including Google Analytics, SiteMeter, Lookery, MyBlogLog Stats, and ClustrMaps. I also added CrowdScience--a program for surveying visitors--for a short time before deciding to perform my own surveys using Google Docs. (By the way, if you haven't already, I would very much appreciate your feedback in this quick survey. I will post a summary of the results next week.)
Until January 6, most of the small amount of visitors came either from a search or from comments I posted on other blogs. There were just a couple of early adopters who regularly visited. On January 6, Craig Newmark was kind enough to give Wehr in the World a mention, which resulted in the traffic spike you see in the graph below. Some of the visitors have regularly returned since then, and I estimate that Wehr in the World currently has somewhere between 25 and 30 regular readers, 11 of which are subscribed to the RSS feed.
According to my RescueTime data, I spent about 49 hours on Blogger last month (or about 1 hour and 36 minutes a day), which is almost identical to the amount of time I spent reading in Google Reader. In the next month, I hope to change that ratio so that I am reading posts for at least twice as long as I am writing them.
It has been an enjoyable first month. I am excited about the quality of the Wehr in the World readers, and optimistic that the quantity of readers will increase in the coming months.
Thanks for reading!
Until January 6, most of the small amount of visitors came either from a search or from comments I posted on other blogs. There were just a couple of early adopters who regularly visited. On January 6, Craig Newmark was kind enough to give Wehr in the World a mention, which resulted in the traffic spike you see in the graph below. Some of the visitors have regularly returned since then, and I estimate that Wehr in the World currently has somewhere between 25 and 30 regular readers, 11 of which are subscribed to the RSS feed.
According to my RescueTime data, I spent about 49 hours on Blogger last month (or about 1 hour and 36 minutes a day), which is almost identical to the amount of time I spent reading in Google Reader. In the next month, I hope to change that ratio so that I am reading posts for at least twice as long as I am writing them.
It has been an enjoyable first month. I am excited about the quality of the Wehr in the World readers, and optimistic that the quantity of readers will increase in the coming months.
Thanks for reading!
Assorted visuals
1. Chain lace fence (HT: PSFK)
2. "One of the more magical components of design..." (HT: Thinking for a Living)
3. A better way to show vacation photos (HT: Influx Insights)
Japan from Eric Testroete on Vimeo.
4. And finally, "On June 17th every year since 1976, the Goldberg family in Argentina have documented their aging process..." (HT: PSFK)
2. "One of the more magical components of design..." (HT: Thinking for a Living)
3. A better way to show vacation photos (HT: Influx Insights)
Japan from Eric Testroete on Vimeo.
4. And finally, "On June 17th every year since 1976, the Goldberg family in Argentina have documented their aging process..." (HT: PSFK)
A series of personality and happiness questionnaires
Dr. Martin Seligman, Director of the UPenn Positive Psychology Center and author of Authentic Happiness, has a web site with a number of questionnaires to explore your personality. The questionnaires require registration, but there are a number of pretty interesting ones, so I would recommend it.
Among others, I took a marathon questionnaire with 240 questions to rank my 24 personality characteristics. Results below.
It also slightly worries me that my personality characteristics do not seem very marketable to employers -- I don't work well with teams, I don't have strong leadership skills, I am not terribly industrious, I am not very brave, nor is my social intelligence the best. But hey, at least I will find beauty in the little things. (Don't trip over each other trying to hire me.)
---
Update 12/23/09: I just finished taking all the surveys. Here are the results:
Among others, I took a marathon questionnaire with 240 questions to rank my 24 personality characteristics. Results below.
- Appreciation of beauty and excellence
- Creativity, ingenuity, and originality
- Curiosity and interest in the world
- Self-control and self-regulation
- Gratitude
- Judgment, critical thinking, and open-mindedness
- Perspective (wisdom)
- Honesty, authenticity, and genuineness
- Hope, optimism, and future-mindedness
- Love of learning
- Caution, prudence, and discretion
- Forgiveness and mercy
- Capacity to love and be loved
- Modesty and humility
- Zest, enthusiasm, and energy
- Bravery and valor
- Social intelligence
- Fairness, equity, and justice
- Citizenship, teamwork, and loyalty
- Kindness and generosity
- Leadership
- Industry, diligence, and perseverance
- Humor and playfulness
- Spirituality, sense of purpose, and faith
It also slightly worries me that my personality characteristics do not seem very marketable to employers -- I don't work well with teams, I don't have strong leadership skills, I am not terribly industrious, I am not very brave, nor is my social intelligence the best. But hey, at least I will find beauty in the little things. (Don't trip over each other trying to hire me.)
---
Update 12/23/09: I just finished taking all the surveys. Here are the results:
Jan 14, 2009
"The happiness frenzy"
Article from Psychology Today on the growth of and controversy surrounding the happiness movement. It is a very well written article and nicely summarizes the relevant research. Highly recommended.
Nicholas Felton's personal annual report
In the self-tracking world, there is the kind of tracking that Seth Roberts, Alexandra Carmichael, and others do primarily to monitor health and find relationships between variables, and then there is the kind that Nicholas Felton does, which is better described as a curious exploration of oneself.
3 minute WSJ video from last month on Felton's work:
Felton has recently released his 2008 "Feltron" annual report--the fourth edition in the series--and it (along with the earlier reports) is available for viewing here.
These reports are as much art as they are anything else, which is why I have decided to order a print copy. I have a deep admiration for the creativity and thought (not to mention the enormous time commitment) that went into developing this.
I consider my own self-tracking to be a poor man's mixture of Nicholas Felton's curiosity and Seth Robert's desire to uncover hidden relationships. I'll have more on that in a post to be published in the next few days.
For more on self-tracking, see this fascinating 12/08 article from the WSJ.
[Hat tip to Nathan at FlowingData for announcing the arrival of the 2008 report.]
3 minute WSJ video from last month on Felton's work:
Felton has recently released his 2008 "Feltron" annual report--the fourth edition in the series--and it (along with the earlier reports) is available for viewing here.
These reports are as much art as they are anything else, which is why I have decided to order a print copy. I have a deep admiration for the creativity and thought (not to mention the enormous time commitment) that went into developing this.
I consider my own self-tracking to be a poor man's mixture of Nicholas Felton's curiosity and Seth Robert's desire to uncover hidden relationships. I'll have more on that in a post to be published in the next few days.
For more on self-tracking, see this fascinating 12/08 article from the WSJ.
[Hat tip to Nathan at FlowingData for announcing the arrival of the 2008 report.]
Jan 13, 2009
Mind games
PSFK points to two very cool games literally played with your mind.
The first is called Mind Flex and is expected to retail for $80 later this year (2:27):
The second is called Mindball (or Brainball) and is kind of like a mental tug-of-war where two players sit across from each other and the ball inches toward the person who is most stressed (i.e., the one with the most brain activity). Unfortunately, this one is not available for retail; it is only available at a handful of museums across the country. (6:21)
The first is called Mind Flex and is expected to retail for $80 later this year (2:27):
The second is called Mindball (or Brainball) and is kind of like a mental tug-of-war where two players sit across from each other and the ball inches toward the person who is most stressed (i.e., the one with the most brain activity). Unfortunately, this one is not available for retail; it is only available at a handful of museums across the country. (6:21)
Jan 12, 2009
Assorted links
- Justin Wolfers predicts that we'll be seeing many more women bringing home the bacon this year.
- To stop procrastinating, think about the task in more concrete terms (ScienceDaily).
- Girl, 13, sends 14,528 texts in a month. (For those keeping score at home, assuming she sleeps 8 hours a night, that's about 1 text for every 2 minutes she's awake.)
- I don't play Halo, but I thought this Halo death heat map was interesting (HT: Cool Infographics):
Data visualization then and now
Eric Rodenbeck delivers a 21 minute presentation at the Lift conference.
Though it is interesting to see the creative techniques used to build visualizations in the absence of modern technology, needless to say, data visualizations prior to the internet were not nearly as impressive. If you are only interested in seeing the innovative new visualizations, I would suggest skipping to about the 9 minute mark.
Though it is interesting to see the creative techniques used to build visualizations in the absence of modern technology, needless to say, data visualizations prior to the internet were not nearly as impressive. If you are only interested in seeing the innovative new visualizations, I would suggest skipping to about the 9 minute mark.
Calculate your future stock earnings
I pity anyone who has not been enlightened to the miracle of compound growth, especially at a young age while it still matters. Compound growth means that, with time, a small pot of money growing with interest can turn into an enormous pot of money.
It is my financial goal for my asset growth to exceed my expenses by the time I reach retirement age 36 years from now. This means that if my yearly household expenses are $40,000, I need to have assets of at least $500,000 growing at 8% a year. If you do the calculations, this is not so far-fetched. NYT has provided a nice tool to help you calculate and visualize growth in your holdings over time.
For my scenario, even assuming the current government spending spree leads to 10% inflation rates, if I contribute $1,000 a month and stock grows at historical rates (8.2%), my asset growth should exceed my expenses by age 43(!). Oh how I love exponential growth.
It is my financial goal for my asset growth to exceed my expenses by the time I reach retirement age 36 years from now. This means that if my yearly household expenses are $40,000, I need to have assets of at least $500,000 growing at 8% a year. If you do the calculations, this is not so far-fetched. NYT has provided a nice tool to help you calculate and visualize growth in your holdings over time.
For my scenario, even assuming the current government spending spree leads to 10% inflation rates, if I contribute $1,000 a month and stock grows at historical rates (8.2%), my asset growth should exceed my expenses by age 43(!). Oh how I love exponential growth.
Jan 11, 2009
Jan 9, 2009
The benefits of focusing on the end
From Deric Bownd's Mindblog, focusing on the nearness of the end -- be it graduation or death -- can lead to increased enjoyment of the present.
Alex Taborrack from Marginal Revolution had an excellent post in July '05 about how his life changed by focusing on what he would do differently if life never ended, or if it ended tomorrow.
Alex Taborrack from Marginal Revolution had an excellent post in July '05 about how his life changed by focusing on what he would do differently if life never ended, or if it ended tomorrow.
What I'm working on...
In the next couple of weeks, in addition to the regular links to interesting material, I will be publishing some opinion posts on the following (not necessarily in this order):
- The best series of data visualizations I have ever seen
- A prediction for the future of music, and the future of web advertising (yes, they go together)
- What makes a blog really good
- Things I know better than Wikipedia (I'm struggling)
- A charity that makes me grumpy
- Personal data collection I do and what I've learned
- The most important positions in football as judged by salaries and draft positions
- Behavioral economics tricks ("nudges") I've used to eat healthier
- My favorite living people who don't know I exist (but hopefully will someday)
- Life: a summary
Jan 8, 2009
In a world of infinite choices, one man tries leaving his to others
12/14 Washington Post article.
To borrow a quote from the infinitely wise Craig Newmark, who linked to this article:
I make now a standing offer: any individual who feels too burdened by all his or her choices can give them to me. I'll take them off your hands, free of charge. You're welcome.
To borrow a quote from the infinitely wise Craig Newmark, who linked to this article:
I make now a standing offer: any individual who feels too burdened by all his or her choices can give them to me. I'll take them off your hands, free of charge. You're welcome.
Discovery: a fish that sees with mirrors
...and it's called a "Spookfish". It is the first vertebrate ever found to use mirrors. Article at ScienceDaily.
"Brain food: How to eat smart"
5 tips from LiveScience.
In summary:
In summary:
- The brain needs Goldilocks portions of energy: not too much, not too little.
- Eat more frequent but smaller meals.
- Eat unsaturated fats, limit saturated fats, and by all means avoid trans fats.
- Avoid foods that will lead to high spikes (and drops) in blood sugar. In other words, eat foods with a low glycemic index (for help, see this chart).
Jan 7, 2009
GPS technology for helicopter parents
Good news, helicopter parents:
For the unbelievably low price of $220 (plus a monthly fee of up to $20), you can slap a tamper-proof wristwatch on your child which will tell you in real time where your child is to within 10 feet.
Coming soon will be tamper-proof shorts that will electronically alert you if your daughter tries showing too much leg. (Kidding.)
A few thoughts on this:
For the unbelievably low price of $220 (plus a monthly fee of up to $20), you can slap a tamper-proof wristwatch on your child which will tell you in real time where your child is to within 10 feet.
Coming soon will be tamper-proof shorts that will electronically alert you if your daughter tries showing too much leg. (Kidding.)
A few thoughts on this:
- It's ironic that there is (apparently) a market for using the same technology on your children that has traditionally been used by the Criminal Justice system on sex offenders. Maybe the next step for this company will be plotting where your child is in relation to the nearest GPS-monitored criminals.
- The market for this product is probably largely driven by the fear generated from news reports of abducted children. What the news reports neglect to mention is that abductions are rare, and that you should be much more worried about your child drowning in the neighbor's pool.
- As cruel as it sounds, this technology would be put to better use on the family dog. Most dogs will get loose at some point in their lifetime, and there is a much lower chance that they will safely make it back home.
Reasons to love boxed wine
After purchasing my first box of wine last year, I must say, I'm in love. Compared to their bottled cousins, boxed wines keep longer (months instead of weeks), are more portable, and are cheaper (about 1/4 the price). As an added bonus, according to this MainStreet article from last June on the six best boxed wines out there, "boxes are very, very chic now".
But what about the taste? I am not ashamed to admit that I have an extremely underdeveloped palate. But whether or not you are willing to admit it, you probably do, too. The truth is, fancy people with lots of training can tell cheap wine from expensive wine, but regular people cannot. See Steven Levitt's excellent post on the subject from last July; it is one of my favorite posts from all of last year.
But what about the taste? I am not ashamed to admit that I have an extremely underdeveloped palate. But whether or not you are willing to admit it, you probably do, too. The truth is, fancy people with lots of training can tell cheap wine from expensive wine, but regular people cannot. See Steven Levitt's excellent post on the subject from last July; it is one of my favorite posts from all of last year.
Jan 6, 2009
Smell is in the nose of the beholder
A Scientific American article discusses dog owners' recognition of and tolerance for their pet's scent:
The owners [...] were blindfolded, and asked to take a deep whiff of two comparison blankets. One blanket was from their own dog’s bed and the other was from the bed of a foreign dog matched for age, sex, and (wherever possible) breed. Remarkably, 88.5% (23 of the 26 participants) correctly identified their own dog’s odor—a finding that the authors attribute to familiarization. However, somewhat surprisingly, the study failed to show that owners preferred this particular smell over the other one.Here is one strange theory (emphasis is mine):
Some evolutionary psychologists have posited that domesticated dogs, with their strong dependency on their owners and their rather neotenous features, hijack our parental mental modules and serve as surrogate children. If so, it may be that childless dog owners may be more motivated than others to imprint their dog’s odors on their brains, even taking a certain aesthetic pleasure in the animal’s peculiar stink.
"The top 12 things you can do for your health"
I received this in an email and thought it was interesting. The list was created by someone named Dr. David Eifrig Jr. and, if nothing else, provides ammunition for a spousal back massage.
- SLEEP. I try to get eight hours of sleep nightly. It's hard to do this time of year – with parties and traveling. My extroverted nature keeps me out late, but I'm trying to leave earlier every year. In 2008, a lot of new scientific research showed how valuable sleep is: The immune system needs it, and there is good evidence linking heart disease with poor sleep habits. Also, avoid leaving the TV on when you sleep. I try to turn the TV off early and read a good book.
- MASSAGE. Last year, massage was No. 4, but I'm convinced it is close to sleep in its health-giving and feel-good properties. I try to get a full-body massage twice a month. If you find the right person, the energy flow and "recharging" alter your life for at least a couple days. This past year, I started doing Thai yoga massage... Wow!
- SUN. I make sure to get sun on my body all year long, especially during the winter. Sunlight lowers the risk of several cancers. The Vitamin D produced by the body from sunlight may be critical in preventing diseases like multiple sclerosis and depression. Don't get burned, but be sure to avoid the poisons in sunscreen!
- MOVEMENT. Call it "exercise" if you'd like. Either way, it's critical to move for 30-45 minutes daily. The simplest thing to do is to walk. I also lie down on the floor and stretch several times a week.
- AROMATHERAPY. This moved up from No. 8 last year... Smells can be uplifting and stimulate the soul, body, and mind. Cleopatra loved the smell of roses so much, she had 15 inches of rose petals covering the floor of her bedroom. I regularly place a few drops or sprays of my favorite scents around the house: lavender on the inside of pillow cases, orange on the air filter, pine on the bathroom rug, bergamot or patchouli in my car... Aromatherapy is a luxury to be afforded. Plus, don't forget the value of flowers that smell good!
- MEDITATION. I meditate at least three times a week, usually in the morning. As I get older, I find meditation is an easy way to create peacefulness and mindfulness. The same physiologic and spiritual benefits occur for some people during religious services and time spent in prayer. The benefits include weight loss, improved oxygen use, and a boost to the immune system. For physical health, meditation is probably better than aerobic exercise!
- FRUIT. I eat fruit whenever I can (berries are especially good for you). The benefits from fruit are impossible to ignore: less arthritis, less cancer, and better bowel movements are just a few. Remember that an apple a day (washed well), keeps the doctor away.
- ASPIRIN. I take one 325 mg tablet every week. The simple but miraculous effects last seven to 10 days. This drug is perhaps the most powerful drug known to mankind... It reduces the risk of heart attacks by 50%, colon cancer by 40%, and strokes by 15%. There's even some evidence it slows the progression of Alzheimer's disease. For the money, this is the best deal there is. The cost of a one-year supply is only about $1.50!
- WINE. I drink one or two five-ounce glasses of wine each weekend day. Occasionally, I'll have a small four-ounce pour if it's early on a weeknight. Regular consumption of wine improves digestion, decreases the risk of diabetes, and decreases the risk of stroke and arthritis. Red wine is more powerful than white wine (although whites have plenty of benefit) because it contains more antioxidants. (By the way, an old German saying goes: "There's more old German wine drinkers than there are old German doctors.")
- DON'T SHARE UTENSILS. I avoid sharing or tasting from other people's drinks and food (this and Vitamin C will practically guarantee you never get a cold again). In the past around holidays, I'd share spoons, forks, and glasses. This year, I didn't do it and I've avoided the usual colds, sore throat, and GI distress! So... you've been warned.
- ANTIBIOTICS. I take an antibiotic once a year whether I am sick or not. Generic doxycycline is my choice this year. I believe this will help me avoid and delay the onset of many inflammatory diseases caused by infections. Ever since my first pathology course in medical school, I have suspected that many chronic diseases, like arthritis and heart disease, are linked to an infectious process. More research is needed. But many doctors are skeptical and buy into the dietary cholesterol nonsense, so money for research is lacking.
- MUSIC. This is new to the top 12 list this year. As I write, I'm listening to B.B. King play "Shake It Up and Go." Studies continue to show listening to music regularly improves health and overall feelings of happiness. A lot of work has shown how Baroque music improves memory. Researchers suspect that music with 60-beats-per-minute creates the benefit. Baroque music and much of Mozart's music has this beat. In fact, I almost always study and read to 60-beat-per-minute music. But it really doesn't matter what the music is.
January 5 is the most depressing day of the year, say researchers
A combination of the cold weather, economic gloom and end to Christmas festivities will leave workers battling the January blues.
So cheer up, because it will only get better from here.
More from Telegraph.co.uk.
So cheer up, because it will only get better from here.
More from Telegraph.co.uk.
Jan 5, 2009
The trolley problem quantified
Dolores Labs has a very interesting post on our sometimes irrational moral calculus.
They asked people to decide three versions of the classic philosophical conundrum, the Trolley Problem, in which you decide whether to kill one person so that several others may live.
And here are the sample scenario descriptions (with five people):There is no clear consensus what to do; in psychological experiments subjects disagree. But how does our decision change based on the number of people who will die? We varied the number of people saved between 1 and 1000 to see if that changed subjects’ ethical calculus.
Here are the frequencies of responses for three different scenarios (plotted on a log scale with a loess fit):
Scenario A
A trolley is running out of control down a track. In its path are 5 people who have been tied to the track. Fortunately, you can flip a switch, which will lead the trolley down a different track to safety. Unfortunately, there is a single person tied to that track. Should you flip the switch?
Scenario B
As before, a trolley is hurtling down a track towards five people. You are on a bridge under which it will pass, and you can stop it by dropping a heavy weight in front of it. As it happens, there is a very fat man next to you - your only way to stop the trolley is to push him over the bridge and onto the track, killing him to save five. Should you proceed?
Scenario C
A brilliant transplant surgeon has five patients, each in need of a different organ, each of whom will die without that organ. Unfortunately, there are no organs available to perform any of these five transplant operations. A healthy young traveler, just passing through the city the doctor works in, comes in for a routine checkup. In the course of doing the checkup, the doctor discovers that his organs are compatible with all five of his dying patients. Suppose further that if the young man were to disappear, no one would suspect the doctor.
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