Walking To School . . .

As a child growing up in a borough of New York City, I walked to school during my junior high and high school tenures, even though the walk was about 2 miles each way on the average. I preferred to spend the money my parents gave me for the bus on a daily pack of chocolate & peanut butter Yodels (remember those) and small carton of milk. Long walks are a joy to me, and is a practice I've carried into my adult life. I am certain that this lifelong practice has been a great contributor to my good health.

New York City is a walker's paradise. However, since my move to the southwestern US, it has been more of a challenge to walk daily as the cities here are generally not pedestrian friendly. Sidewalks are typically empty, and public transportation scarce. Everybody drives, and the obesity rates in this area are a reflection of that.

With that in mind, I was delighted to read a story in the International section of the March 27, 2009 New York Times about a city in Italy where school bus routes to ten elementary schools are being replaced with walking routes. Former bus drivers and volunteers escort the children by foot to school each morning along the former bus routes. The change was made to combat growing childhood obesity rates and car emission pollution. What a wonderful idea! Developing a habit of walking can provide long-term health benefits and reduces pollution. I am certain many of our cities can benefit from similar programs as well.

A Possible Fifth Force?

Anyone who has taken a course in physics is familiar with the Four Fundamental Forces of Nature. These are the four forces responsible for all the properties and changes affecting matter. They are gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force, and weak nuclear force. There is an amazing degree of fine-tuning in these forces that make possible the existence of our sun, and our planet with its life-sustaining properties. Some scientists believe that the fine-tuning of these forces give evidence of an intelligent designer.

Well, researchers are now considering the possibility of a possible fifth force that effects the universe's structure formation. Read the story here. The existence of a finely tuned fifth force that is involved in the formation of the universe again suggests a deliberate order and intelligence behind it all. How could chaos or mere chance create five finely-tuned forces that work in precise concert to make life possible?

Can There Be Design Without A Designer?

Some scientists now offer a counterargument to Darwin's Theory of Evolution, known as intelligent design, or ID—asserting that design in creation is firmly supported by biology, mathematics, and common sense. They seek to include discussion of this idea in the science curriculum in schools. The so-called evolution wars are raging mainly in the United States, but similar trends are reported in England, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Serbia, and Turkey.
Where there is intelligent design, there must be a designer. Wouldn't you agree? I look at this species of "rainbow" jellyfish recently discovered near the Australian island of Tasmania (see photo above) and see marvelous evidence of intelligent design. Can such marvelous design exist without a designer?

Few scientists are willing to publicly discuss the existence of creation's designer. You can appreciate, though, that it is futile to try to evade the question of the designer. How could the explanation involving design in the universe and of life itself be complete if the existence and identity of the designer were concealed or not even considered?

Visit National Geographic for more info on the discovery of the new species of jellyfish.

Reducing Pollution the Old-fashioned Way!

I ran across an extraordinary item in the news that shows a common-sense approach to reducing the use of polluting fossil fuels. Imagine a modern cargo ship pulled by a giant sail! This updated application of an age-old technology has been shown to reduce fuel consumption and emissions. The kite, 1,000 feet [300 m] in the air, harnesses the wind, allowing the captain to throttle back the ship’s engine. A 1,722-square-foot [160 sq m] [8 by 20 meters] kite recently helped to power a cargo vessel across the Atlantic. It provided fuel saving of 10-35% per day on its maiden transatlantic voyage. Read more on this story here. The developer's website can be accessed here.

This is a proven "green" technology that can be retrofitted to existing cargo ships. Good stuff!

The Hidden Cost of Electronic Media

Have you noticed that the art of conversation is on the decline? Also, when is the last time you received (or sent) a well-written letter? Both penmanship and letter-writing are becoming lost arts. A good measure of our humanity is dying along with these inter-personal skills. The price paid for the convenience and lure of electronic media can be seen in the last nation on earth to introduce television.

For decades the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan resisted the lure of modern media. But after many inhabitants complained that they could not watch the 1998 World Cup soccer tournament, the government introduced television in 1999. Now people can view 40 channels and are already addicted to Hollywood movies and Indian soap operas, says a report from Bhutan. Instead of sitting together singing and talking as they used to, families gather to watch TV. One woman laments having little time for anything else anymore—including prayer. “Even though I spin my prayer wheel,” she said, “my mind is always on the TV,” reported the Qatar daily The Peninsula. “But what many fear is the rabid consumerism of much of the outside world. ‘Television and advertisements create desires [that] may not be satisfied given the economic situation of the people.’”

Does that sound familiar?

Web Designer Ramblings - Photo of the Day

Today's Web Designer Ramblings Photo of the Day is from the Annual International Balloon Fiesta held in Albuquerque, New Mexico every October. It is a colorful and exciting event guaranteed to please any photographer!

Don't Eat So Fast!

Eating fast seems to be a byproduct of modern western culture. We are on the run, and often eat quickly to meet demands on our time. However, that may be a major factor in excess weight gain. The people of Okinawa, Japan provide a lesson in this regard. They have the worlds highest concentration of centenarians (over 100 years of age) and are considered one of the healthiest cultures on earth.

The Okinawans have the habit of eating only until they are about 80 percent full. As a result, they rarely overeat. This helps avoid needless weight gain. In fact they have a term for it: "Hara Hachi Bu - eat until you are 80% full." It makes perfect sense. There’s about a 20-minute delay before the stomach tells the brain that it is full.

That simple practice leaves more energy for other activities, and contributes to more consistent weight control. And it may contribute to better overall health. In Okinawa, Heart Disease rates are 80% lower, and stroke rates lower than in the US. Cholesterol levels are typically under 180, homocystein levels are low and blood pressure at goal levels.

When older folks in Okinawa meet their children and grandchildren after a time apart, their greeting is likely to be, "Are you eating good food?" Eating healthy food and taking time to enjoy a meal is an Okinawan tradition with rich benefits. Do you think they are on to something?

One Good Chocolate Treat!

I love chocolate. The real stuff . . . Dark chocolate with a rich cocoa taste. So imagine my surprise when trolling my local Dollar Store to discover an amazing treat from Belgium, Lu Petit Ecolier Extra Dark Chocolate Biscuits. A box of delicious cookies, each topped with a sumptuous slice of deep, dark Belgium chocolate! Delicious! This is real chocolate, 70% Cocoa! Taste one of these and you will never want to go back to the sugar-laden mystery chocolate treats that clog the local supermarket.

These cookies are not for the kids. They probably will not like them. These are grown-ups treats, perfect with a cup of good coffee or a favorite tea. If you have a Dollar Store near you, run there and grab a box or two of Lu Petit Ecolier Extra Dark Chocolate Biscuits while they are in stock. They are an obscene value at only a dollar per box! Lu makes premium quality cookies and tea biscuits, yet they are usually hard to find. These are worth the search!

A Masterpiece of Creation

National Geographic has an article on the Pacific barreleye fish, with large green orb-like eyes set within a transparent dome head. The two tiny dots that appear to be eyes on the front of the dome are actually smell organs! This is the sort of thing that leaves you scratching your head in amazement! As a web designer, I know how challenging good design is, even in my relatively mundane task. By comparison, to see a creature like this, and not acknowledge the existence of highly intelligent designer behind it seems utterly senseless. This cannot be the product of blind chance as taught in the Theory of Evolution!

Enough of my venting . . . Click here to see the video of the marvelous transparent head fish on the National Geographic website!

A Smart, Anyone?

The first time I saw the Smart Car was five years ago in Paris, France. In Paris, the Smart is très chic, and looks so fashionable parked near the Enfants Rouge while the stylish owner picks up a few things for breakfast. However, on New York's urban roadways they look more like a Pekingese lost in a world of Rottweilers. Something is lost in the translation.

Although they have received high safety ratings, I am still leery about matching a Smart against a bevy of SUV's on a busy city street. Frankly, I think a Honda Civic offers much more value for about the same price. However, I sure would love to drive a Smart in Paris . . .

Bottle or Tap?

I love to hike in national and local parks, and have come to the conclusion that the single most ubiquitous source of litter is the discarded plastic water bottle. You may find some of the facts regarding this persistent icon of convenient modernity interesting.

Bottled water is the single largest growth area among all beverages, that includes alcohol, juices and soft drinks. Per capita consumption has more than doubled over the last decade, from 10.5 gallons in 1993 to 22.6 in 2003, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation. Most bottled water is consumed away from home, usually at a park, in an office or even while driving — areas where there's usually no recycling. This makes it far less likely to wind up as litter or trash rather than in a recycle bin.

America’s thirst for bottled water seems unquenchable, reaching nearly 30 billion bottles a year,” says U.S.News & World Report. Many consumers do not realize, however, that most bottled water is simply tap water, so “anyone who is opting for bottled over municipal [water] for health reasons is misguided,” says the magazine. What flows out of the tap in many countries is monitored to ensure conformity to strict standards. And when compared with the “outrageously expensive” bottled alternatives, tap water is also “practically free!

Let's compare the price of bottled water to tap water. If you purchase a 20 ounce size bottled water, that works out to 5 cents an ounce. Most municipal water costs less than one cent per gallon. Gas at the pump is a bargain compared to the price of bottled water. At $3 per gallon, the price of gasoline is just over 2 cents an ounce!

So, bottled or tap?

Understanding the Banking System Collapse

There is often a world of difference between the public discussion of major world events, and the truth. That seems to be starkly true when it comes to the current banking system collapse. To hear a simple, truthful accounting of the facts is refreshing. "This American Life" one of my favorite National Public Radio programs comes to the rescue, with an excellent broadcast explaining the nuts and bolts of this confusing modern phenomenon. This is the single most illuminating treatment of this subject I have heard (or read) to date. To hear a streaming version of this broadcast, go to http://www.thisamericanlife.org/. Show Title: "Bad Bank."