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| Article in WWF Newsletter |
Go ahead, rub it in, Barbara Kingsolver, (High Tide in Tucson). ◦
2012-07-22
The Coming Tucson I Won't Miss
Go ahead, rub it in, Barbara Kingsolver, (High Tide in Tucson). ◦
2012-05-24
Rain in Midtown Manhattan
Brown Thumb: Composting Success in Southeastern NY
You know it's good for you. Even before the scientists and the activists and the sustainability hawks started in on you, it was like exercise and flossing. You know what I'm talking about. Composting.
Last summer, the local Town of North Hempstead here in Long Island offered a partly subsidized composter. The idea caused a bit of a stir in the household, and Ann wrote a story for Patch about how she warmed to the idea.
While we weren't excited about sitting in on a co-op class in order to get it (actually Ann endured this indignity), I heard my late Mom's voice cheering us on. Then there was the matter of the coffee grinds; we grind our own and it just seemed right that the yard should benefit from our largess -- especially a corner near the back porch which received a lot of sun, which the vines there enjoy, but has poor soil conditions.
While we weren't excited about sitting in on a co-op class in order to get it (actually Ann endured this indignity), I heard my late Mom's voice cheering us on. Then there was the matter of the coffee grinds; we grind our own and it just seemed right that the yard should benefit from our largess -- especially a corner near the back porch which received a lot of sun, which the vines there enjoy, but has poor soil conditions.
There were other deserving spoils deep from the forgotten corners of the fridge: Emily's leftovers from Sheesh a few months ago, some of my spinach that had started to flex its muscles, and some of Ann's sausage that was gone but she was too much in mourning to let it go. And more. [Note: Norm, a much less satisfied co-composter, reminds me that in fact sausage can't be part of the secret sauce.]
So we embarked on the adventure with optimism, and for some, skepticism. But I was determined to see it through. We didn't have much snow this year, so I didn't have to dig the composter out of snow banks more than once, but there were plenty of cold New York nights and mornings when carrying the day's spoils [sic] out didn't particularly invigorate.
In the kitchen we sprang for a pail that filtered the odors, since Ann was worried that the odor would interfere with her favorite morning smell - burned bagel with butter.
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| RSVP Pail from Amazon |
That worked well, and the pail is easy to clean, though when our CSA Golden Earthworm subscription is in season, there are many more trips from the kitchen to the composter.
Then came the issue of what to put in it. We followed the guidelines from the class and elsewhere, which I won't repeat here, except to emphasize two things (1) do the obvious and accelerate decay by cutting up large vegetables, even if they are unsavory to look at; (2) yes, shredded newsprint does get composted, though it seems to take perhaps twice as long as leaves or vegetable cuttings do.
I started the process with some back yard soil and leaves (we have those in abundance pretty much 7 months of the year in these parts).
Last weekend, I emptied the very full contents of the composter and was quite pleased with myself, as the photos below demonstrate.
Q: Does it smell? That's what the lid is for.
Q: What about insects? That's what the lid is for.
Q: Were you worried about kids playing in the muck? That's what the lid is for.
Q: Was it difficult to get the stuff out on your shovel? That's what the lid is for.
Q: Did you have trouble rotating it -- the ads make it look too easy? A full composter can require some oomph to turn, and I supplemented this by periodically (every couple of months in the winter, every two weeks during the warm season) stirring the contents with a stick.
2011-03-05
The Anti-Gift: Value-Preserving Cold, Hard Cash
The basic premise of Scroogenomics must have wide appeal, based on the extensive coverage it's received, including NPR, BBC, Marketplace, Time, New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Slate.
That premise, in case you've been under a rock during the media blitz that seems recently to accompany a certain breed of economist-firebrand, is that gift-giving destroys economic value. Destroys. How uncharitable, unAmerican, anti-Christian — worse, obliguely anti-leisure.
That premise, in case you've been under a rock during the media blitz that seems recently to accompany a certain breed of economist-firebrand, is that gift-giving destroys economic value. Destroys. How uncharitable, unAmerican, anti-Christian — worse, obliguely anti-leisure.
What sort of reception has Waldfogel received? In interviews, he adeptly recites the easy observations: folks are generally unable to give gifts that the recipient values as highly as the gift-giver (think $50 sweater feeding moths in the closet). Waldfogel writes in Slate that ". . . we value items we receive as gifts 20 percent less, per dollar spent, than items we buy for ourselves. Given the $65 billion in U.S. holiday spending per year, that means we get $13 billion less in satisfaction than we would receive if we spent that money the usual way—carefully, on ourselves. Americans celebrate the holidays with an orgy of value destruction. Worldwide, the waste is almost twice as large." (There's a silver lining there; Americans aren't that generous.)
Chris Dillow at Stumbling and Mumbling believes the thesis takes instrumental rationality too far. What about the great memories created by a good gift? The social ties cemented? The romances initiated by good intentions? "Roger" on Dillow's site reminds us that some gifts are intentionally at cross-purposes with the recipient; he's thinking of parental "good-for-you" gifts like chemistry sets, I imagine. ProEthics LTD takes Waldfogel to task for ethical lapses - reminding his readers of the affecting value assymetry in "Gift of the Magi" and no less than an episode of The Waltons. The Guardian's Aditya Chakrabortty is more unkind, calling Waldfogel's world "consumer-onanism."
"Imagine being a dinner-party guest, Scroogenomics-style. You don't fancy the hosts' trout and muscadet, so you pitch up with a KFC bucket and a giant bottle of Strongbow. The conversation drags so you spend the evening with the Nintendo Wii. They'll never invite you back, but Waldfogel will understand – you were merely being efficient."
On the other side of the ledger is Fast Company's Kate Rockwood, who contrasts Scroogenomics with Shoptimism, describing Waldfogel's book as "crackling with insight." . George Will, too. Will, in his piece about the book, observes that "Between 1998 and 2005, gift card sales grew 27 percent a year. They now are about one-third of Christmas spending and rank near the top of lists of preferred gifts." Retailers such as Amazon seem to understand this with "wish lists" that can be shared with prospective gift buyers. (Note to family: Ignore my Amazon wish list; it's my purchase-avoidance archive, not a wish list.)
Waldfogel himself makes exceptions for gifts between persons who know each other well. But he argues that far too much gift-giving reflects poor economic decision-making. Perhaps one approach, admittedly impersonal when compared to one's third Stephenie Meyer book, is the charity gift card, suggested on another Marketplace story. Find a charity that's meaningful to the recipient. You may discover that cash is neither cold nor hard.
2010-04-01
Precipitous Extremes: Tucson and New York
By contrast, annual rainfall in my native Tucson is around 12 inches. (Photo by Maisel/News).
2009-10-09
Martin Seligman's Wiley-Blackwell writings free through 2009
Courtesy of the 2009 British Academy - Wiley/Blackwell Prize in Psychology, all of Martin's Seligman's Wiley publications can be downloaded free of charge through the end of 2009. The prize thus offers several benefits:- Seligman's academic work is made available outside certain subscription-only publications, exposing those writings to a new audience.
- Psychology's academic publications receive somewhat weaker search engine spidering than other disciplines because there are fewer open or lay periodicals covering these topics. The availability of these papers and the keywords linked to them are a relatively new subweb of content.
- Seligman's work addresses "happiness" in a pragmatic, empirical way that is welcome amid a pervasive fog of pseudo-psychology that dominates pop culture's take on the subject.
2009-09-24
Porn Trumps Al Queda Communications in Laptop Searches
Earlier this year I was detained for awhile at a Canadian customs office. This required me to endure a minor laptop inspection, and to discuss the details of work permitting for IT projects in Canada (a topic for another day). In 2004-2005 I had commuted to a Canadian call center from New York, and had some delays, but none as extensive as this. What had changed since then? Both scenarios were post-9/11.Curious as to whether others had experienced this, a search turned up a 2007 post by Thomas Kyte, who is, or was, an Oracle employee. His story of border inspections at the Canada-US border is amusing on its own merit.
Part of Kyte's annoyance was an obvious lack of IT savvy on the part of the customs agent. While it wasn't the focus of his blog post, it's clear that the typical customs agent, unable to navigate Windows proficiently and burdened by a misguided search for pornography, is unlikely to discover Al Queda messaging on terrorist laptops submitted for inspection.
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2009-08-07
Geeks Thrive at the Juncture of Fun & Work
Douglas Haider's enthusiastic recollection of a moment from The Matrix and the tedious subject of packet analysis reminded me that a good geek is forever poised on the edge of fun and a heckuva of lot of work.If you too love packet analysis, after a few years you'll be ready either for improved netflow visualizations or visual aids of the physiological sort. There is something about Mr. Haider's smile in the stock column photo that leaves me wondering How Deep is his Love.
2009-07-02
EWG Posts Sunscreen Report for 2009
A previous post mentioned the Environmental Working Group's report on sunscreen safety and efficacy. Today EWG announced that their 2009 sunscreen report is available. (This is a non-profit worth supporting).
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2009-06-27
Hat Fashion Resurgence? Sunscreen Tips You Probably Ignore
A few excerpts from the NYT article "Melanoma of the Eye" highlight items generally dismissed by this blogger's immediate family (you know who you are):
- Everyone, including children, should wear hats with wide brims. (Even wearing a hat, however, may not fully protect against skin cancers on the head and neck.)
- Everyone over age 1 should wear sunglasses that block all UVA and UVB rays when in the sun.
- Adults should wear sunscreen every day, even if going outdoors for only a short time.
- Sunscreens may not protect against melanoma and basal cell cancers, though recent improvements in formulations may not be reflected in health findings
- Claims for antioxidant protections in cosmetics should be questioned, as most do not contain enough vitamins C, E or selenium
- Sunblock is often used incorrectly, applied too lightly and too localized, and is not replaced when it becomes ineffective
EWG: Some Sunblock Ingredients of Questionable Safety
It's bad enough that many are still not convinced to use sunblock on a regular basis. "It's cloudy today; I don't need to." "I don't need it because I have no wrinkles." Now there's another excuse, albeit no less lame, for leaving the sunblock at home. For some time now, the Environmental Working Group (a charity I support) has sponsored and produced a website that does some work that the FDA doesn't: reporting on the ingredients in cosmetic products.
At the EWG Cosmetic Safety Database, found at cosmeticsdatabase.com, visitors can learn about ingredients and study recommendations. In 2008, EWG sponsored a summary of sunblock products, in which they pointed out that in addition to products that don't protect against the sun (many because they don't provide UVA protection or quickly break down in the sun), some products contain potentially hazardous incredients. For example, the EWG investigation lists among their concerns oxybenzone (benzophenone-3) and homosalate. The EWG's website includes a separate page for each ingredient, permitting readers to form their own opinions about risk / efficacy tradeoffs. A 2009 version of the report is in preparation; sign up on the site for notifications.
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2009-05-30
A Reluctant Post: Salt- Laurel Sulphate Free Shampoos
From Arizona originally, 
I like swimming but don't usually invite others into the shower with me. But here is a list of shampoos whose ingredients (though there are some specific exceptions in this list), purportedly do not include phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate and/or parabens. Some claim to use only vegetable components. This list appears because the Yahoo Answers and other sites have little or misleading information posted. It shouldn't be this difficult, yet most of these products are not available from the big consumer online drugstores (drugstore.com, Walgreens, CVS, etc.).
I like swimming but don't usually invite others into the shower with me. But here is a list of shampoos whose ingredients (though there are some specific exceptions in this list), purportedly do not include phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate and/or parabens. Some claim to use only vegetable components. This list appears because the Yahoo Answers and other sites have little or misleading information posted. It shouldn't be this difficult, yet most of these products are not available from the big consumer online drugstores (drugstore.com, Walgreens, CVS, etc.). The firms and products aren't necessarily recommended unless otherwise noted. Do the research.
Some have recommended GoodGuide.com. GoodGuide, still in "early beta," seems focused on the corporate citizenship of the supplier as much as the health or environmental consequences of ingredients.
- Naked Naturals (have tried this; acceptable)
- Nurture My Body
- Aubrey Organics
- John Masters Organics
- Essential Oils
- Mill Creek (website issues?)
- Jason Natural Products
- Nirvana Natural
- Circle of Friends
- Iden
- and more (a comprehensive list this is not)
2009-04-26
Letter-writing Campaigns Not Always in Vain
In response to several local PBS spots highlighting precipitous drops in state funding for PBS (and NPR, I later found out), I responded with a brief e-letter to my New York state Senator, Craig Johnson (seventh district). I received a helpful and positive written response several weeks later (April 14 of 2009) indicating that the legislature had changed the funding cuts to 17% instead of the original 50% reduction proposed by the Governor.
2009-04-05
"Rift Valley" : Obit-Symbol of Evolutionary Primatology's Loss
A sponsored obit in the NYT today announced the loss of Dr. Elizabeth Hunt Harmon, a professor at Hunter College in NYC who had co-directed a paleontological project in Southern Ethiopia's Rift Valley. I don't know Dr. Harmon, and don't study in this field. But as I mulled the particular character of this loss, the name "Rift Valley" seemed to take on additional meaning: the rift between the politics of federal R&D spending and attempts to quantify the benefits of fields like paleontology; the rift created by the loss of Harmon's perhaps 30 or more years of her own investigation, or by inspiring the investigations of others; the rift between one's career plans and what fate permits us to achieve.
Following was my hurried post.
◦I did not know Elizabeth Harmon, but the loss of a one hitting her stride mid-career, obviously well-liked by students at Hunter College and pursuing original research under the demanding conditions of her work in Southern Ethiopia, must lace a sense of injustice with the grief felt by those who loved her. This leaves unmentioned the greater loss experienced by a quiet but sizeable community wishing to better understand our past and counting on the steady work of Dr Harmon and others like her, to press on with that task.
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