Three more observations about what we can learn from this history:

1) The income-well-being relationship has appeared just about as strongly in surveys probing happiness as in surveys asking about life satisfaction. (There are exceptions.)

2) One interpretation of the 2006 Gallup data is that it is still all about relative income comparisons: In today’s global village, folks in Jamaica may be comparing their lot in life to the greater prosperity they observe when watching U.S. television shows. Countering this, it looks, to my eye, as though the income-happiness link appears about as strong in countries that are truly plugged in to the global village, as those that are less engaged.

3) Moreover, the relationship between income and happiness is about as strong today as it was in the very first surveys, which were taken sixty years ago, when the world was less integrated.

The Economics of Happiness, Part 3: Historical Evidence - Freakonomics - Opinion - New York Times Blog

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YouTube - Monkey Riding Mini Bike

Only about 4% of the world's oceans remain undamaged by human activity, according to the first detailed global map of human impacts on the seas.

A study in Science journal says climate change, fishing, pollution and other human factors have exacted a heavy toll on almost half of the marine waters.

Only remote icy areas near the poles are relatively pristine, but they face threats as ice sheets melt, it warns.

The authors say the data is a "wake-up call" to policymakers.

Map shows toll on world's oceans | BBC NEWS | Science/Nature

Interestingly, DAT knockout mice have been suggested as an animal model for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Elevated metabolism due to persistent elevated dopamine levels may be a factor contributing to the symptoms of ADHD, Thanos said.

Cocaine's Effects on Brain Metabolism May Contribute to Abuse

It is established that learned knowledge and habitual procedures (crystallized intelligence) hold up well as people age, said lead author Ellen Bialystok, Ph.D., of York University, but abilities that depend on keeping one’s attention on a task (fluid intelligence) actually decline as people get older. But in her study, Bialystok found that those who have been bilingual most of their life were better able to manage their attention to complex set of rapidly changing task demands as measured by an experimental task – The Simon Task – that purposely distracts the test takers.

Being bilingual protects against some age-related cognitive changes, says new research - Baycrest

Educating the Heart and Mind: A Path to Universal Responsibility

1:00 p.m. Gates open
3:00 p.m. Musical entertainment begins (artists to be announced)
4:45 p.m. Main program begins
6:15 p.m. Event ends

Emory University presents an afternoon with His Holiness the Dalai Lama with special musical guests and activities. His Holiness will deliver a public talk suitable for the entire family entitled "Educating the Heart and Mind: A Path to Universal Responsibility."
Venue

Centennial Olympic Park, Atlanta, Georgia
See Venue Details for more information about parking and accessibility.

The Dalai Lama will be speaking in Centennial Olympic Park on October 22. Be there or be square.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama at Emory University | Events

Time series of the Teton Dam failure

Teton Dam Failure, 5 June 1976

“Was it all multiple choice?” I asked. “And how did they grade it?” I was thinking of my own exams. “Did they count only the right answers.?”

When he said Yes to all the questions questions, I did not have the heart to tell him what I knew as a mathematical certainty—that the exam was, like most graduate medical exams, and large parts of legal licensing bar exams in most states , virtually a complete fraud.

Unexpected Truths: The Fallacy of Hard Tests

This winter looks like a season of cats for me. Big cats. Now that I've settled in the Pench National Park and doing safaris more often, it is getting real interesting. Here, sightings of large predator the Tiger is not as common as in Bandhavgarh or in Kanha but there are good densities of wild dogs and the elusive, adaptable, little big cat - the leopard!

Leopards are the most successful of big cats. One of the reasons is that they are shy and secretive. That helps, especially in places where its bigger cousin, the Tiger, reigns supreme and also where ever it is close to human settlements. They are not easy to see and you always get fleeting glimpse or hear that unforgettable sawing call.

An early morning, a few weeks ago, we were driving in an area called ‘Jodamunara’. While driving in this area, the eye wouldn’t miss the huge black rocks and boulders which are all over the place. The road winds like a snake with ups and downs since it's a hilly terrain. I was keeping an eye on rocks, as my first sighting of a leopard in Pench happened just there late last year. We came to a turning, when suddenly our guide shouted leopard!Less than a hundred meters ahead I saw one leopard jump off from a small boulder which was on the roadside. Then we saw another and that was still on the same rock. Two leopards!! WOW! I immediately asked the car to be stop. Himanshu, my colleague, who was driving stopped the vehicle and I asked him not to move till they are comfortable by our presence. The one that jumped was much smaller compared to the one that was on the rock and with quick look through binoculars we conformed smaller one was female and big one was a male. A courting pair!

The female was very young compared to male. We think that this might be her first courting. She was shy as she hid behind a tree. The male looked old and had bad wounds on his face and chest. There was fresh blood on his face. The wound was probably caused by the female, as leopards, and all big cats in general, tend to be aggressive while mating. Poor old guy had been clawed on his
face by the desperate young female. Seth, the Head Ranger from CCAfrica Phinda of South Africa, who was with us for five weeks to train us was with me. Looking at the swollen face of the leopard, we came to this conclusion: When female is in estrus, she advertises by sawing. Sawing is a way where leopards call for marking territory or for mating. It is fairly loud, similar to the sound of a saw cutting wood but difficult to explain in writing! This sawing along with the scent marking of the female would have attracted another male from different territory. And it was quite possible that both the males would have fought during the previous night.And when the male leopard jumped off the rock in the end we actually saw him limping. So, it must have been a fight with another male and few on the face may be courting fight with the female.

Anyway, we slowly approached the couple to get a good look at them. The male was not at all bothered by us but the female looked nervous. I had a little knowledge of leopards, but Seth has amazing experience with them since he does specialist safaris there which deal with tracking leopards! We knew the female would come back eventually. We waited there patiently and now we were less than twenty meters from the leopards.

This guy gave me a tour of this reserve, and then we climbed a big hill. He's an excellent guide, and his blog is interesting because he is intimitely familiar with all the wildlife on this Tiger reserve: Elephants, monkies (never trust a monkey), tigets, leopards, etc.

Live from the Indian Jungles

Steven Levitt is an economics professor at the University of Chicago and the best-selling author of Freakonomics. In this talk, filmed at TED2004, he goes inside an inner-city gang to examine economic principles at work in the real world. (Recorded February 2004 in Monterey, CA. Duration: 22:00)

The actual economics of being a crack dealer in the 80s, in NYC.

Steven Levitt on TED Talks