Guy catches an alligator while barefooting

Not everything is what it seems...

A great example how easy it is to change the meaning of things...don't take anything at face value!

Brian Day is hardly alone: Amen

This editorial correctly summarizes some of the implicit disadvantages of our current health care system. Yes, Jack Layton you love our current health care system, as long as you don't need it. And, NO, our current system is not fair, it's just not money that dictates the inequalities.

I can speak from personal experience. I had a referral to a specialist - despite repeated voice mails and faxes from me and my GP's office, the specialist's office DIDN'T even call
me back. Finally I was given an appointment by fax to my GP's office 2 days before the opening, and then it took over a day for my GP's office to let me know. By this time I was completely booked and could not attend. I finally just went to the clinic. The fellow glanced at my medical school bag and saw me right there.

I'm not saying privatization is the answer, but we need to somehow make our health care system service oriented. Imagine if a telephone company didn't call you back for a month? And this is your health care.

Goldman Sachs CEO gets $67.9 million bonus, $67.9 million too much

Goldman does not cause high profits but is merely associated with it.

Yes Goldman has done well in a credit crunch and put up big profits when the other banks have faltered, but is it because of him? No. In fact, it's not even the talent of those around him. All Goldman has to do is not screw up royally...and just ride on the brand recognition. It's sad really.

So much for a meritocracy and market efficiency.

Read a softball article here.

Snowkiting?

My preference is definitely the water, though I'm thinking of giving this a shot.

Now that's a kite

This is cool. When I saw the picture I thought it was doctored. These Germans have actually designed a $750,000 160 square meter kite that can save as much $1,600 in fuel a day. Hmm...~470 days to pay it off, not including repairs and maintenance. My question is - how do they launch that thing?

Motorolla S9: Bluetooth headset and stereo headphones

I'm surprised these headphones haven't caught on. There I am on my run, no cord dangling by my face, volume/stop/play/forward/back buttons at my fingertips, listening to the music of my choice. Then the music fades, and I hear the sounds indicating a call is coming in. It's my mom. We chat for a while, then hang up and the music resumes. I just don't Motorolla has advertised them enough for what they are. The only downside is that when you use them as a bluetooth headset people think you are talking to yourself...though with the amount of schizophrenics walking around where I live I blend right in.

Pros: sufficient volume (though not enough to give you hearing loss), stay put while running, all in one, price ($70 new on ebay), stereo bluetooth

Cons: built as bad as most motorolla products (I already snapped one of the arms), 1.5 hours of battery life, red inside, ear buds fall off easily (though motorolla provides an extra set), not as light as regular headphones

I bet the plantronics version is better, though they are big.

(Young) Canadian students top world rankings

Turns out Canadian 5th graders ranked 3rd in the world on an international test of science ability.

Yet, does this play out later on, such as in University and beyond? Are Canadians known for their intelligence by their global peers? I don't think so, though there's no reason why we shouldn't be. We are like the small quiet kid in the corner - noone dislikes us because we don't do anything to provoke them, yet noone really likes us either because we have minimal impact in the world (yes we are small, though our impact is less than 1/10th the impact of the US). Why aren't we forging ahead? We don't have political strife, wars to fight, or anything else to distract us other than some Anglo/Franco issues. Yes we came up with the Blackberry, but why can't we create google?

Getting googly and yes HIV is bad...but Hep C may be worse

Sad case...people infected with HIV (and hep C) from organ transplants.

Though c'mon media. Yes, it is definitely too bad that 4 people contracted HIV, but why did the author just mention the hepatitis C as an aside? If I had to choose one of these chronic diseases, I know which one I would choose...many co-infected patients are now dying from the Hep C complications (liver) not the HIV (antiretroviral treatments are getting better). HIV is bad, but let's not let it overshadow other contractable diseases. How many people know that there is only a 0.3% chance of contracting HIV from a infected needlestick injury versus a 3% and 30% chance from Hep C and B respectively?

And after my tough week last week, I saw this article:

I graduated university in 2005 - some of my friends went to work for Google. I think they made about 80K base (similar to investment banking base pay) and may have received a modest bonus. What's crazy is the value of their options now:


I won't lie...I'm jealous. Perhaps there is a certain amount of money for which I would forego becoming a doctor (hopefully not out of sheer greed, but rather to do cool charitable things with it).

Clutch move...I felt like this is what happened to me this week

It is not suprising to me that doctors have so many mental health issues.

What I learned today...

It doesn't matter what a person's crudentials are....if you don't have presense you just don't have presence. Funny why lawyers are always so short.

Our future health...

Toddler struck by drug-resistant bug improving

These events are so much more real now when I spend time in the hospitals in which they are occuring. Parents make sure your children finish their antibiotic regimens!

Study Finds Carcinogens in Water Near Alberta Oil Sands Projects

Does anyone in Alberta (other than the residents directly affected) care? Perhaps someday the honeymoon in Alberta will be over.