Experts in risk analysis have a model they use to describe the dynamics of disasters and our efforts to prevent them. Â It’s called the cumulative act effect, or more frequently (and popularly) the Swiss cheese model. Â In short, it imagines
One Person’s Intractable Dandruff Is Another’s Golden Opportunity
… or, is that price gouging on the Internet or American Capitalism at its finest? I have very stubborn dandruff. For a while, tea tree oil shampoo (a recommendation from a stylist) was enough to deal with it. Then I
And It’s Not Coming Back, Either.
(With apologies to Monty Python and anyone else who’s already worked this gag on this subject.) Dear Mr. President, Once again this week you have spoken of bipartisanship, and how you still see the possibility of bipartisan cooperation in addressing
Just a Little Twilight Vent
This was one of the three quotations on Google’s Quote of the Day gadget today: Everywhere I go I’m asked if I think the university stifles writers. My opinion is that they don’t stifle enough of them. There’s many a
This is just too much …
This is the sort of news story that just gets me so mad. When I get really mad at a story on the radio, I’ve been known to start yelling back at it. I can’t do that here, but I’m
An Open Letter to Dianne Feinstein
In the spring of 1980, for an exercise in my eighth grade class, we were asked to name our heroes. In front of my whole class, I named you. I didn’t live in San Francisco. I never had. But even
You’ve shut off your cell phone, now shut your face!
Joe and I went to see The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy last night. I think this is the first time we’ve been to the theater this year — the first movie to come out this year that we’ve actually
question for the Religious Right
For all those who are protesting the movie Kinsey, to those who compare Kinsey to Josef Mengele, I have one question: How many people did Kinsey murder? P.S. I’ll give bonus points to anyone who can tell me why it
A Few More Whines for the Cellar
This is getting to be too much fun. The only person who shows any interest in buying my cats wants one cheap and wants it declawed Maxis has finally added pets to The Sims, but you gotta buy an add
No Cheese, But I Just Gotta Whine
Okay, so here’s my whines for the day. I’ve spent over $700 in the past year on advertising for the cattery, and haven’t sold cat one from any of it The harder I work, the more in debt I am