NY Times: Revisiting the ‘Crack Babies’ Epidemic That Was Not.
This makes me want to spit nails. It wasn’t an epidemic. But it existed — don’t try to wash it away. Until you’ve taken infant CPR, walked the floors with a newborn who won’t stop crying from suffering detox, having to remain calm when their heart monitor goes off (again), and more … I’d certainly like to give these folks a piece of my mind. Not a one of these ‘investigative reports’ ever talks with foster parents of the era.
Later: Perhaps I wasn’t clear. Many of the victims are dead from heart defects. If they made a year, they were lucky. Who speaks for them?
MSNBC: Charges dropped against Florida teen over amateur science experiment.
“The Florida teenager who was arrested two weeks ago for causing a small explosion on the campus of her high school will not be charged with a crime. Kiera Wilmot, 16, was arrested by police in Bartow, Florida, after conducting an unauthorized science experiment which lightly damaged an eight ounce plastic water bottle.” My emphasis.
Guardian.UK: The dark side of home schooling.
Pacific Standard: What Does It Take for Traumatized Kids to Thrive?
Later: Tangential.
Guardian.UK: Florida student charged and expelled after ‘science experiment’ goes awry.
Seems to me the teacher needs the discipline, not the student. Hmmm?
Guardian.UK: Louisiana counts the cost of teaching creationism – in reputation and dollars.
“With the New Orleans Medical Corridor poised for tremendous growth, this law also profoundly impacts our ability to fill jobs in the cutting-edge science fields with students educated in our state’s public schools.” Ah, the effects of religious Lysenkoism in America. That’ll drive us to the top of the world stage, surely. As a laughingstock.
CJR: That’s incredible.
“At a younger age, they sometimes believe that if someone put it online, it must be true.” They need to learn — sooner than later — that we are awash in opinion fueled by a general paucity of poorly-understood facts. If we reduced news to facts, we’d save one hell of a lot of bandwidth. Perhaps that’s a better road to ‘energy independence’ …
The New Yorker: What if the Tsarnaevs Had Been the “Boston Shooters”?
Our responses to extreme violence are skewed.
Guardian.UK: US schools weigh bulletproof uniforms: ‘It’s no different than a seatbelt in a car’.
I understand the desire to protect kids. But … to think we actually need to go this far. Stats show % of households with guns is actually lower than the ‘70’s. Perhaps a more immediately effective preventative would be to mandate a certain level of psychological care in insurance coverage (a pittance in most health care policies today). That way, hurting people can get something more than a generic Prozac script from a GP.
Discover: When Media Uncritically Cover Pseudoscience.
Of course, there is a current crisis that exemplifies his argument. Britain’s measles outbreak.
NY Times: Cooper Union Will Charge Tuition in 2014.
ScienceMag: When Does Your Baby Become Conscious?
Apparently at 5 months old. The fact they recognize faces at three months doesn’t count?
Smithsonian: Fathers Recognize Their Babies’ Cries Just as Well as Mothers.
“ It’s often believed that nobody can recognize a baby’s cry as accurately as his or her mother, but a study published today in Nature Communications by a team of French scientists led by Erik Gustafsson of the University de Saint-Etienne found that fathers can do it equally well—if they spend as much time with their offspring as mothers do.” Oh. My. Freaking. God. They had to do research to figure this one out?
CNN: Dozens of Okla. dentist’s patients positive for hepatitis.
NY Times: A Senate in the Gun Lobby’s Grip.
Give ‘em hell, Gabby.
Guardian.UK: Is there anything wrong with living with your parents into your 30s?
Check the polling numbers. I don’t know where to begin.
Texas Observer: Texas on the Brink.
Yes, but if they secede, would it help the deficit? [Facetious.]
OpenCulture: “Hummingbird,” A New Form of Music Notation.
I always wondered why musical notation has never been modified. Learning to ‘read’ has always been a turning-away point for many.
Pacific Standard: Why Chess Should Be Required in U.S. Schools.
No, they should teach poker. Chess gives you perfect knowledge of the other person’s play. Nothing is hidden but their choices. Poker hides your opponent’s cards, and he could be bluffing … just like real life. See Von Neumann’s work on game theory. And be warned, what they may actually end up teaching is ‘naked self interest.’
Salon: Adam Lanza was bullied at Sandy Hook Elementary, family member says.
“Adam would come home with bruises all over his body. His mom would ask him what was wrong, and he wouldn’t say anything. He would just sit there.” The memory and anger over bullying persists … even for healthy folks.
Chronicle of Higher Ed: Enlist the Power of a 401(k).
“The existing 401(k) framework could provide an equitable solution. Under such a plan, employers that offer 401(k) savings plans would allow employees to choose allocating a percentage of their pay to their retirement accounts, their student-loan balances, or both. Better yet, an employer that offers a company match of, say, 4 percent, would give employees the option to contribute the match to either account.” I still contend this recession would have been a lot worse if not for people being able to early withdraw on their 401(k)‘s. I dislike the headlong desire to kill them, as observed in some nattering financial/editorial circles.
SF New Mexican: Learning Curve—Bills meet end with governor’s veto.
Just keeping you informed of what’s going on in our State Gov’t.
Cynthia Poon / Industrial Design: musical mower.
Change the pegs, make different notes. This is the kind of thing grandparents buy for their grandkids, just to drive young parents even crazier.
Washington Times: Jane Nebel Henson, wife of late Muppets creator Jim Henson, dies at 79.
Rest in peace, Good lady. I hope the Muppets do an Irish wake. If you dig on Google Images, you can see Jane with many of the early Muppets.
NY Daily News: Proposal to study how violent video games affect youngsters has stalled.
You know, there is an elephant in the room here, one that is uncontested. Children learn by imitation. A well-crafted study would go far in analyzing what children actually appropriate from video games.
