Random Thoughts

Economic Theory- Supply and Demand Part 2

In considering some of the comments made on the original posting, I realized that there were some variations and refinements in discussing supply and demand that warranted additional consideration. In light of those comments, let me refine the definition o ...

Blog Post - Gerhard Adam - Aug 4 2009 - 2:42am

Science is arriving Sept. 1!!

What's that, you say? Science is coming? I thought it was already here- then what are we talking about on Scientific Blogging? Fear not, befuddled blog readers. For when I speak of science coming to us, I speak of only the most spectacular, the most e ...

Blog Post - Becky Jungbauer - Aug 4 2009 - 9:11am

What happens if you REALLY don't like the pharma industry

Big Pharma gets a bad rap, and sometimes deservedly so. After covering the industry for a number of years and working with them (not for them), I know the good, the bad, and the ugly of industry well. But no matter how bad the story is, I've never bee ...

Blog Post - Becky Jungbauer - Aug 4 2009 - 3:56pm

Government Programs- Opinions Welcome

Almost everyone seems to be opposed or at least guarded about the government becoming engaged in more services.  There seems to be a general assumption that it will be badly run, or simply bad.  However, in thinking about it, it seems that when we remove o ...

Blog Post - Gerhard Adam - Aug 4 2009 - 8:08pm

Et Tu, Brute?

Stabbed by his once most faithful man after many other blows received by the conjurors, Julius Caesar pronounced those words, according to reports, before falling to death. Now, is history repeating itself? Paolo Guzzanti, once one of Silvio Berlusconi ...

Blog Post - Tommaso Dorigo - Aug 5 2009 - 11:23am

Health Insurance- The Smoke and Mirrors Industry

Before we consider the issue of health insurance it is useful to examine the basis of insurance, generally, and how revenue is generated within that business model.  The basic premise is that a group of individuals will pay premiums which will provide a re ...

Blog Post - Gerhard Adam - Aug 5 2009 - 5:36pm

World to end in November

Take note- the world will come to an end in November. It will probably look somewhat like this: Anyway, it's too bad we won't make it to 2012 to see if the Mayans were right, but I really don't want to live through another 2-year-long presid ...

Blog Post - Becky Jungbauer - Aug 6 2009 - 12:30pm

Tangential Science: Modern Greek Fire Ain't What It Used To Be

Tangential Science: it's not necessarily science, but it's still funny. 1.  Greek fire ain't what it used to be.  If you're a student of history, you know that Greek fire  (πῦρ θαλάσσιον) was popularized by the Byzantines, mostly agains ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 7 2009 - 7:05pm

Tangential Science: Redheads, Sex Parties And The World's First Astronomers

Tangential Science: it's not necessarily science, but it's still funny. 1.  You've all heard that blondes have more fun.   There is even a recurring urban legend that they are becoming extinct, which seems like an effort to get them to have ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 10 2009 - 10:31pm

The Nasty Paragraph-Vaporizing Key Sequence

Enough. I have lost to hyperspace too many paragraphs of my scribblings-here, as well as elsewhere- and I cannot stand it anymore. I need your help. I write on a SONY VAIO laptop, with an English keyboard. The bottom row of keys has the "ctrl", t ...

Blog Post - Tommaso Dorigo - Aug 12 2009 - 3:27pm