July 26, 2007
Is Fat Contagious?
A new study shows that obesity spreads in social circles. The more likely that you have overweight close friends or family, the more likely that you are overweight. I wonder how if this is true in other countries/cultures.
July 14, 2007
Crime Caused by Lead?
Economist Rick Nevin has proposed that the drop in crime in New York City in the late 1990's was due to a reduction in lead poisoning. Experts in the field of neurotoxicology are not surprised as there is a lot of data on the relationship between lead exposure and sociopathic behavior in adolescents and young adults. This is an alternate theory to what Steven Levitt proposed in Freakonomics
July 11, 2007
20 Years
A few weeks ago I attended my 20 year high school reunion, East Anchorage High School Class of 1987. It was a fantastic weekend of catching up with friends that I haven't seen since high school or shortly thereafter. There weren't any real big surprises in how anyone turned out, I would say that most everyone was already on the path of how they would turn out--admittedly my sister living in Anchorage has kept met up to date with some gossip. Although I don't know if my classmates were surprised with how I turned out. I do wonder to what extent we all reverted to our high school personas when we were around each other rather than what we've each become. I would recommend that everyone attend their 20 year reunion--assuming at least a few people will remember you.
Probably just as or more important for me, I got to spend some time with my nephews and niece.
