Comments

HeatherL

Technology

Mourning the Death of the Meta Media Experience

By Tom Conlon Posted on 11.20.2009 9 Comments
I tend to think of my cable bill kind of like my health insurance premium. Every month, I begrudgingly pony up the funds necessary to continue this so-called “service” wondering the what the heck it is I’m actually paying for--especially since most of what I regularly watch can be found online in some form--all the while deathly afraid of the consequences should I ever stop wiring in my money. Every month, I consider amputating cable from my bottom line once and for all. But what’s holding me back is that I think I might actually miss it.

11.26.2009 at 06:23pm - Comment by HeatherL

My husband rarely watches TV anymore. His schedule (shift work) doesn't allow for it, so most of what he watches is online. It's fine for both of us, because he doesn't truly miss the channel surfing and I don't have to fight for the remote. Now he just complains that he doesn't have time to watch all the stuff he actually Wants to watch. As for the communal experience, that too can be shifted online. There are plenty of forums you can find that are willing to discuss whatever show you wish. You not restricted to your face-to-face contacts anymore. And just because you can watch at any time doesn't mean you will all be watching at different days or times; the movie theatre is still packed on opening night for a reason.
Gadgets

Sony Daily Edition Reader Adds 3G, Aims at Kindle

By Posted on 9.23.2009 8 Comments
Dear Kindle: Watch your back. This morning at the New York Public Library, Sony President of Digital Reading Steve Haber announced a new member of the company's e-book reader family, the Reader Daily Edition. The 7-inch device connects to AT&T's 3G network to allow Kindle-like access to Sony's online library.

8.25.2009 at 06:19pm - Comment by HeatherL

Now I'm kicking myself for buying a PRS700 for x-mas last year (not really :P).Oh, well, when I have to replace that (be nice if there was color version by then; yeah I thought so)...
Science

FYI: Do Other Animals Have Trouble With Wisdom Teeth?

By Amber Sasse Posted on 8.20.2009 4 Comments
The third molars—the last of a group of teeth that grinds food into easy-to-swallow chunks—tend to be overcrowded in adult human mouths, and thus require yanking. But every other toothed mammal has room for their “wisdom teeth,” and so did Neanderthals and other early hominids, says evolutionary biologist Leslea Hlusko of the University of California, Berkeley. So why have those teeth become such a pain for us?

8.20.2009 at 10:51pm - Comment by HeatherL

I have all my wisdom teeth, and never had a problem.
Science

Slow Down for a Slimmer Waistline

By Jaya Jiwatram Posted on 10.23.2008 2 Comments
Want to eat yourself thin? Cool your jets. According to research published in the British Medical Journal this week, those who wolf down their food and eat until they're stuffed are three times more likely to be overweight.

10.26.2008 at 10:41pm - Comment by HeatherL

We should all show this to schools. My kids only get 11 minutes to eat. No wonder everyone's getting fat.
The Environment

Are Environmental Factors to Blame for Autism?

By Posted on 7.11.2008 6 Comments
Dear EarthTalk: What's going on with all the cases of autism cropping up and no one seems to know why? It stands to reason it must be something (or some things) environmental, yet every study allegedly turns up no conclusion? What are the possible causes? -- Jessica W., Austin, TX

7.11.2008 at 11:16pm - Comment by HeatherL

I'm willing to bet a fair percentage of the "increase" can be attributed to expansion of the criteria. Five years ago I was told my oldest didn't have Asperger's Syndrome, but now he tests as "likely". We are now waiting for an assessment for a firm diagnosis. His younger brother has already had his assessment, with a diagnosis of Pervasive Developmental Disorder (not otherwise specified), another Autism Spectrum Disorder. These kids could have easily fallen through the cracks without this to decribe where they are coming from, thus not gotten the help they need to overcome their difficulties.
The Environment

Endangered Animals 100 Times Worse Off than Previously Believed

By Posted on 7.3.2008 10 Comments
Adding insult to injury, many species that are already solidly facing extinction might actually be 100 times more endangered than previously thought, scientists say. A new mathematical model, developed by ecologists at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of California, produces extinction risks that are orders of magnitude higher than conservation biologists estimated in compilations like the IUCN red-list.

7.5.2008 at 11:29pm - Comment by HeatherL

251 million years ago, 96% if marine species and 70% of land species disappeared in The Great Dying. As long as Something survives, Nature will bounce back... eventually.
The Environment

The Problem With (Bio)plastic

By Posted on 5.7.2008 14 Comments
Bioplastics, like biofuels, are on the rise as consumers demand alternatives to fossil fuel-based plastics and big business take their wants seriously. Everything from shopping bags to clamshell containers are being reengineered out of bio-based packaging in the hope of finding a truly disposable container; one that, instead of ending up floating in the ocean, will quickly decompose underground. That ideal, as you might expect, is not quite so simple. And already, our two leading alternative bag types are falling short of the hype.

5.8.2008 at 06:13pm - Comment by HeatherL

Yet another "alternative" that turned out not so good.
Science

Increase in Autism Due Only to Changes in Diagnosis

By Posted on 4.23.2008 5 Comments
There is more evidence this month demonstrating that we are not, in fact, presently suffering through an age of increased incidence of autism, but rather as the definition of autism is refined, we discover individuals who were previously misdiagnosed. A University of Oxford study has followed up with a group of 38 adults who were originally involved in a series of studies on developmental language disorders in the late 80s and 90s. Those who manifest symptoms of the disorders have difficulty with spoken language, a trait also seen in autism.

4.23.2008 at 05:18pm - Comment by HeatherL

This is no surprise to me as a parent of two such children. For years we searched for answers with our older child, but ended up with the younger, more interactive child diagnosed first (PDD-NOS) just last month. The elder is showing sign's of a slightly more severe condition (Asperger's), but no one would commit to it. He is now awaiting assessment from the same clinic that did his brother.
Entertainment & Gaming

The Future of the Couch Potato

By Posted on 4.4.2008 2 Comments
The convergence Consulting Group has just released a report stating that Web-based TV viewing is on the rise. By 2010, the group predicts that 23 percent of the content produced by broadcast and cable TV will be viewed online—up from about 9 percent today. At the same time, since advertisers haven't moved too many of their dollars over to the new medium yet, you have to expect that the big networks won't let a full transition happen too quickly—the money has to be there first. In other words, old-fashioned commercial-heavy programs aren't going away just yet.

4.4.2008 at 10:32pm - Comment by HeatherL

Unfortunately, being not a resident of the USA kind of shuts me out of a lot of that. I understand there is some stuff available here in Canada, but it's not much and not what I want. Plus the fact it's pretty damn slow. Maybe once I can get d/ls over my satellite, maybe then...
Science

When Science and Justice Clash

By Posted on 3.31.2008 6 Comments
Paul Offit has written an op-ed in todays New York Times which hastens to point out what other news stories have largely misrepresented in the Hannah Poling autism lawsuit: The outcome of the court ruling does not mean the government is admitting to a causal link between childhood vaccines and the onset of autis

4.1.2008 at 10:31am - Comment by HeatherL

I know these parents are just looking for something to blame, but they do a disservice to everyone when they try to discredit vaccination. As a parent of two children with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, on the Autism Spectrum, I know perfectly well that I have nothing to blame but genetics, as my brother is similar. But other parents could be misled by this ruling. They should be reminded that a judge is not a scientist, and to listen to the scientists.