styroblog

Made in Wisconsin

2011-12-16T23:04:00.002-06:00

Something I posted last year as a Facebook note, during the Arab Spring:Editor, Wisconsin State Journal: I read that tear gas canisters used during the recent unrest in Cairo, Egypt, were labeled "Made in America". While unrest in the Land of the Pharohs is unforunate, and we all support the Egyptian people's orderly transition towards greater liberty, the good news here is: "Made in America"! "

Bits assembled into 2 halves of different rants

2011-12-16T22:05:00.004-06:00

Just a few comments:When will the majority of folks wake up to the insults "job creator" and "trickle down economics" (otherwise known as "supply side")?"Job creator" is generally recognized to mean folks with more money than almost everyone else who, it is presumed because they apparently have lots of money and thus naturally do these things because having lots of something always motivates one

Reducing bullying through eliciting empathy

2010-11-09T09:20:00.002-06:00

Evidence-based, broad-scope approach, in part based on eliciting desired behaviors which compete with bullying and aggression, rather than attempting to punish aggression.OpinionFixes: Fighting Bullying With BabiesBy By DAVID BORNSTEINPublished: November 8, 2010A group that brings infants into classrooms to teach empathy has produced sharp drops in bullying.

Increased spanking for children with disabilities

2009-08-11T06:46:00.001-06:00

EducationDisabled Students Are Spanked MoreBy SAM DILLONPublished: August 11, 2009More than 200,000 schoolchildren are subjected to physical punishment each year, and disabled students get a disproportionate share, according to a new study.So, what could we be doing instead?

New research on hyperbaric treatment for autism

2009-03-27T08:28:00.006-06:00

I'm a little behind on all the treatments used with children diagnosed with autism & there are a lot, including a many, many untested treatments. Hyperbaric treatment is one I've run across before, seen advertised in the local newspaper for treating other childhood disabilities, and have encountered supporters for in the past. The big problem in evaluating the treatments is lack of clinical

Parenting Style and Delinquency

2009-03-17T08:36:00.007-06:00

From a new parenting research blog -- in brief, a recent meta-analysis of parenting research studies from 1950 to 2007 indicates that authoritative parenting style is associated with less delinquency than authoritarian parenting style (nothing in the blog post about neglecting/rejecting):Parenting Styles and Delinquency"A review of: Hoeve, M., Dubas, J., Eichelsheim, V., Laan, P., Smeenk, W., &

Rewards for students

2009-03-03T09:23:00.004-06:00

NYTimes today runs an article on renewed interest in and investigation of rewards on student performance. Tellingly, from an behavioral standpoint, the title refers to "rewards for students" rather than rewarding behaviors by students:HEALTH | March 03, 2009Rewards for Students Under a Microscope By LISA GUERNSEYAre there benefits to paying students for good performance in school? (In essence,

The Uncataloged Museum: Museums and Ukrainian Law

2009-02-24T10:28:00.001-06:00

The Uncataloged Museum: Museums and Ukrainian LawAn interesting article on museums and Ukraine, in part due to what it says about the interaction of individuals, institutions, government, and culture in Ukraine today -- and how the past affects the relationship.

Conference twittering

2009-02-10T18:24:00.002-06:00

Has anyone applied twitter or some other brief social networking to gatherings like conferences or conventions -- especially those at which you there's too much cool stuff happening at once?And if you were to provide this as part of the conference, could you use the data on the tweets somehow to get live and post-hoc data on participant response to the conference?

allegations of anti-vaccination scientist misconduct

2009-02-10T08:24:00.004-06:00

Having worked with adults with developmental disabilities and mental retardation caused by childhood infections, I'm appreciative of the risks involved in not vaccinating for MMR. In my opinion, developmental disabilities caused by childhood infections such as measles, mumps, or rubella are just as devastating to the individual and his or her family as autism. And evidence continues to accumulate

CNN -- Behavior intervention coverage

2009-02-02T11:09:00.003-06:00

I'm going to be monitoring this video series from CNN about in home applied behavior analytic intervention for an adolescent girl showing tantrums and other disruptive behavior at home. I'd be interested in any one's comments about it.Sometimes developing and carrying out these interventions can take time and some trial and error -- unlike what some viewers of Nanny 911 might expect, if you're

Dane County Odds and Ends

2009-01-23T08:57:00.003-06:00

It appears that not even having one's own helicopter or stable of horses is a key to happiness and neighborly good will:(From the CAPITOL TIMES)Neighbor feud brings more criminal chargesMike Miller — 1/22/2009 7:31 pmFlying his helicopter over a neighbor's property has landed John F. Dohm in more trouble with the law.Dohm, 54, was charged Thursday with misdemeanor bail jumping for allegedly

Twit?

2009-01-21T07:59:00.003-06:00

Lately, folks I know have been more frequently speculating about the usefulness of Twitter to the non-narcissic. Dave Pogue describes twittering, and gives a case example of an actual useful "twitter":TechnologyPogue's Posts: Twittering Tips for BeginnersBy By David PoguePublished: January 15, 2009I’m still dubious about Twitter’s prospects forbecoming a tool for ordinary people. But one thing’s

Making meetings effective

2009-01-18T21:29:00.003-06:00

This may seem dry and obvious. It may be. Yet, an effective meeting can become as difficult as reaching a mirage. So, for what its worth, from the NYTimes and Monster.com:PreoccupationsMeetings Are a Matter of Precious TimeBy REID HASTIEPublished: January 18, 2009It is certain that every organization has too many meetings, and far too many poorly designed ones.

gaming the brain?

2009-01-15T12:01:00.002-06:00

JB wanted this posted:"The Escapist has an article called 'Gaming the Brain' about video games being used to treat ADHD. Quoting: 'One of the more promising therapies is neurofeedback, which involves continually monitoring patients' brainwaves. Subjects attempt to change their brainwaves to a set pattern and receive an auditory signal that tells them whether they were successful. With enough

Ukrainian-Russia Gas Crisis Analysis

2009-01-13T09:30:00.003-06:00

I am somewhat biased in this regard, but I've been resenting the implication in some media sources that Ukraine is holding-up the flow of gas in the current crisis -- especially given the absence of proof that it is so, other than Kremlin assertions. The Eurasia Daily Monitor makes the case for Ukraine:Source background: The Eurasia Daily Monitor is produced daily by the Jamestown Foundation, a

Squirrel Soufle?

2009-01-07T09:04:00.004-06:00

I casually mentioned that I had, in the past, eaten squirrel -- no, I don't really know why I tell people such things -- to my sister in law a couple of years ago. She was shocked, as it appears that the beilka is considered something of a Ukrainian national fuzzy, cute, NON-EDIBLE animal.HA! Looks like there's good reason to eat them, if your British and you choose the right ones:Dining &

Risk -- The Corporate Board Game?

2009-01-05T17:07:00.003-06:00

The Times Magazine has a long, but informative and (I thought) entertaining article on risk assessment in the financial industry, how it may or may not have contributed to the current financial situation, and the strengths and limitations of data and data analysis techniques. In some ways, which I should think more about before getting into detail on, these points apply to behavioral data in

Speaking of economic assumptions...

2009-01-04T21:45:00.004-06:00

here's one of my favorite lists from the book "Natural Capitalism":THE FREE MARKET AND OTHER FANTASIESRemember the little section toward the beginning of your first-year economics textbook where the authors listed the assumptions on which the theory of a perfect free market depends? Even as abstract theories go, those conditions are pretty unreasonable. The main ones are:All participants have

U.S. Forest Policy Is Set to Change, Aiding Developer

2009-01-04T21:37:00.002-06:00

I'm trying to share news by using this here blog instead of gumming up email boxes, so...LOS ANGELES -- The Bush administration appears poised to push through a change in U.S. Forest Service agreements that would make it far easier for mountain forests to be converted to housing subdivisions.Mark E. Rey, the former timber lobbyist who heads the Forest Service, last week signaled his intent to

क्लीन कोअल इन यौर स्तोक्किंग?

2008-12-11T12:45:00.001-06:00

अप्परेंत्ल्य, थ फोल्क्स व्हो उसेद तो वर्क फॉर बिग तोबक्को नो वर्क फॉर चलेँ कोल:http://www.americaspower.org/Carolers

Let's collect some data!

2008-12-09T09:47:00.004-06:00

Enough talking about the outcomes of empirical attempts to understand what's going on about us -- lets generate data. That is, (1) think about what the heck this blog is about, (2) try to identify up to three topics, and (3) think about which you like most relative to the others, then second most, then third. (4) Lastly, give your feedback in the form below.

Have you any Scotch?

2008-12-09T09:03:00.004-06:00

... my sister-in-law asked me -- the question confused me for a few seconds, because I knew she didn't drink, and I figured maybe whiskey would not be a good start, in any case. I was relieved to find out she wanted the adhesive tape. Now, however, I'm wondering what exactly she was up to:SCIENCEOffice Supply Physics3MPublished: 20081027Unrolling Scotch tape generates X-rays.

Subway typeface

2008-12-04T08:44:00.003-06:00

This is for JB & his graphic design thing:N.Y. / REGIONCity Room: How Helvetica Took Over the SubwayBy By Jennifer 8. LeePublished: December 4, 2008With a legacy spanning over a century, the subway system has signs that feature a hodgepodge of typefaces -- dominated by Helvetica, but with plenty of strange mixtures.Anyone with observations on typefaces in other transport systems in other cities,

How we really live: 1. Act 2. Make up a reason for having acted

2008-12-04T08:01:00.009-06:00

Millennia of watching ourselves do strange things and making really poor decisions (often recognized with hindsight); centuries with economics as a field of study, theory, and research; going on 80 years of radical behaviorism -- could it be that we are finally acknowledging that we are not rational actors?Whew!Really, poor Yulka has had to hear me gripe too many times about (in a nutshell) how

More on automatic reinforcement: Endogenous Opiates

2008-12-01T16:17:00.005-06:00

Endogenous opiates are often speculated about as a mechanism of automatic reinforcement for self-injurious behaviors (typically in the population of persons diagnosed with developmental disabilities, as opposed to individuals not diagnosed with a developmental disability who engage in self-cutting). Naltrexone is subsequently sometimes prescribed in an attempt to interrupt the hypothesized

Taking the plunge

2008-12-01T16:04:00.006-06:00

Well, its official:FROM NYTIMES:BUSINESSDow Plunges 680 Points as Recession Is DeclaredBy MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUMPublished: December 2, 2008The announcement that the recession began in December 2007 came as the stock market plunged, with the Dow off more than 7 percent.

Meme mime-ing: Omnivore's Dilema

2008-12-01T14:52:00.004-06:00

OK, (did you know that stood for "Old Kinderhook"? I think I heard it from Paul Harvey when I was a kid -- no, not personally, over the radio) so I read a thing that said one needs to use memes to increase traffic to one's blog.I think that could mean doing something like mentioning The Omnivore's Dilemma here. So here goes: I didn't get past the second page of TOD because it seemed too much like

Treating Tics With Behavior Therapy

2008-12-01T11:39:00.006-06:00

Doug Woods, Ph.D. (a Western Michigan alumn) does solid clinical psyc work over at UW-Milwaukee. What's especially appealing is his work on tic disorders -- like the tics associated with Tourette's Syndrome -- and the treatment of those disorders through functional assessment and habit reversal. For example: Himle, M. B., & Woods, D. W., Conelea, C. A., Bauer, C. C., & Rice, K. A. (in press).

From JB -- Better healthcare not difficult

2008-11-25T12:14:00.005-06:00

JB sent this along to me via email, so I'm postin' it for him:(Jaybelles, as he's also known, is more of an lol[cat/pizza/universallyaccessableuserdesigninterface]-blogger.)5 Myths About Our Ailing Health-Care SystemBy Shannon Brownlee and Ezekiel EmanuelSunday, November 23, 2008; Page B03With Congress ready to spend $700 billion to prop up the U.S. economy, enacting health-care reform may seem

Palin Turkey Interview -- The Outtakes

2008-11-25T11:00:00.002-06:00

SlateV's mash-up of the Palin vid of the moment (or season -- 'tis the season) ...Caution, it gets pretty gruesome. Thank goodness the brutality of the campaign trail is over and we can all join hands for the holidays.

Madison Light Rail

2008-11-25T10:04:00.007-06:00

Well, trolleycars appear to be out (sorry, Mayor Dave), but light rail planning and development continues. Perhaps a positive outcome of the proposed infrastructure-building stimulus package will be better, faster, more efficient mass transit in Madison (WI) which reduces the pounding the Isthmus takes down Johnson and along University. Maybe the Beltline would be a little less insane.Several

More kicking!

2008-03-20T06:26:00.002-06:00

I always really liked the kicking parts of swimming workouts. In fact, when I swam on my own for fitness after college, I would often do a 2000 yard kick (various kicks, with and without a kickboard). So today's NYTIMES article on swimmer Ryan Lochte's training took me back to the good old days (btw, the article, if you go to the full article, claims most swimmers who are not training for the

International Women's Day and UA Women OR What's With This Picture?

2008-03-07T12:19:00.003-06:00

Ok, so on one hand this is about disparities and challenges to social and economic progress for Ukrainian women. On the other hand, the picture pasted in the article (at least on the blog I got it from) is a bikini pin-up shot. So, how deep does this, at least to my Midwestern US eyes, um, ambivalence about what it means to be female and what is valuable about being female run? If there was an

Who cooks for you?

2008-03-07T09:55:00.002-06:00

I don't have much to say, except thanks to The Economist for the succinct statement.

Cap Times, RIP

2008-02-08T13:55:00.000-06:00

Well, the Capitol Times, the progressive, afternoon local newspaper I subscribe to, is no longer publishing a daily hard copy. I'll miss having an afternoon paper to read at night. They will continue on the web, however, so perhaps a go can be made of it.The postings in response to the article describing the change vary between missing/mourning the paper, complimenting it, and dancing on its

Them poems

2008-01-17T15:36:00.000-06:00

Well, indirect contribution from BigSalmon, at work:Mason Williams' original Them poems --------------------------------------------Them Lunch Toters How about Them Lunch Toters, Ain't they a bunch? Goin' off to work, A-totin' they lunch. Totin' them vittles, Totin' that chow, Eatin' it later, But a-totin' it now. Look at Them Lunch Toters, Ain't they funny? Some use a paper sack, Some use a

Diary of a Devoushka

2008-01-14T14:42:00.000-06:00

Why is this posted, you ask? Well, some different reasons (including queries as reasons) -- (1) a yen for a little Ukraine led me to Neeka's Backlog, which led me on to her blog feeds and thus here, (2) I want to know -- what is this? Is it satire? Is it commentary? Is it actually what it reports to be (I doubt it, but maybe I read the Onion too much)?, (3) whatever it is, is it good or

Who evolves for whom?

2007-12-14T12:41:00.000-06:00

In The Botany of Desire, a thesis is that plants have evolved to match human tastes for greater propagation. Cats have been noted to have perhaps been less shaped by selective breeding in their domestication, implying they have "chosen" to be domesticated (become domesticated at least partially from some other cause than selective breeding by humans).Who cares, right? Well, what, exactly does the

Organic, free-range, locally grown, grass (and shrub) fed

2007-12-14T09:12:00.000-06:00

Venison!Yep, when you think about it, "game meat" isn't too different than that stuff people are paying $5/lb for at the Farmer's Market. And hunting land is good hiking, camping, snowshoeing, bird-watching, condo- and housing-tract-free land.As a writer in the NYTimes says "Locavore, Get Your Gun"Summary: Op-Ed ContributorLocavore, Get Your GunBy STEVEN RINELLAPublished: December 14, 2007Hunters

Rice and Words

2007-11-20T10:23:00.000-06:00

Well, test your vocabulary, learn yer words, and donate rice (all for free!)Thanks to BayfieldDana!

Orwell on Tolstoy on Shakespeare

2007-11-07T08:32:00.000-06:00

"One does not necessarily get rid of that kind of temperament by undergoing religious conversion, and indeed it is obvious that the illusion of having been reborn may allow one's native vices to flourish more freely than ever, though perhaps in subtler forms ..." -- George Orwell on Tolstoy's tendency to strike other's he disagreed with, even after giving up his title.The full of Orwell's article

SelectACandidate

2007-10-30T09:46:00.000-06:00

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/ongoing/select_a_candidate/Yep, go there and try out the tool. Minnesota Public Radio has the policies of the folks running down so you choose what stands you agree with and get a score back showing the correlation of candidates to what you endorse. Try it.Turns out I'm a Chris Dodd man right now, which is

keiretsu

2007-10-19T10:35:00.000-06:00

Heard of it? I hadn't. Having grown up in the 80's, when the Japanese were supposed to be poised to buy the whole country, I'm still interested in business models of Japanese origin (well, enough to look up an interesting word about them on my lunch hour) and Japanese business history. How people organize into groups to accomplish activities, especially evolved systems, can be pretty fascinating,

When choice is demotivating

2007-10-04T07:27:00.000-06:00

Choice! Choices! More choices, more better ... right?!? Well, I guess we all know it depends on the choices. And it appears it may also depend on how much "more choices" is. John sent along a link to an article arguing more choices at some point decreases people's ability to engage in the programmed or desired behavior. (Of course, choice making is a behavior, or behaviors, in itself, meaning

Death in custody (TSA)

2007-10-01T10:55:00.000-06:00

Getting arrested (or "detained"). Its a big item down there in the fine print of the social contract. There's an interesting (and tragic) case related to this in today's NY TIMES "City Blog" -- "A New Yorker's Puzzling Death ...". Check it out, especially the comments -- looking at how other's have interpreted their copies of the "contract". My post follows, but I'm interested to know what you

Thorazine ads and more!

2007-09-10T19:32:00.000-06:00

More vintage ads...

Pushin' Equal Exchange

2007-08-03T18:13:00.000-06:00

Well, Matt made the mistake of inviting me to post, so what's the first thing I'm going to do? Push my feel-good namby-pamby social agenda, that's what. I've probably caused some ears to bleed with my talk of Equal Exchange lately, but in taking a look at their cooperative business structure I was impressed enough to risk starting up the bleeding anew. An excerpt:At Equal Exchange we believe

Nevermind the Mind

2007-07-31T09:45:00.000-06:00

So, them folks at the Times are arguing that, since we appear more likely to be competitive when there is a briefcase in the room, more cooperative when the word "support" is in the background environment, or rate a person who asks us to hold her coffee as "warm" or "cold" based on the temp of the coffee in the held cup, this means that the unconscious mind is up to its old tricks.Of course, if

Obituary -- Albert Ellis

2007-07-31T07:18:00.000-06:00

Not to turn this into the ObitBlog (is there one?), but a good obituary is a chance to look over someone's lifespan and get the, um, long view. If nothing else, a good obit helps me remember all the possibilities over the lifespan.I heard Albert Ellis on NPR a while back, when he was suing the foundation. Rather than just blaming those he was suing for the situation, but not making excuses for

Shorter, fatter, wealthier?

2007-06-16T09:22:00.000-06:00

I read about this a while back, and saw it again in yesterday's New York Times (print version, looks like the online one is "Times Select". Turns out Americans are no longer the tallest folks around, which is strange, because population height correlates with affluence, and Americans are the most affluent. Yet not only are Western Europeans taller (the Dutch are now the tall ones), but Americans,

Plant a little cover in the backyard, maybe

2007-06-16T09:11:00.000-06:00

It seems like lots of popular attention is given to the effects of house cats and pesticides on bird populations. Maybe because those seem to be easier factors to deal with than our sprawl? After all, its easy to shift the blame to the cat folks or the guy down the street with the hyper-green lawn. Its harder to blame your castle (house).Meadow Birds in Precipitous Decline, Audubon Says By

Obituary -- Richard Rorty

2007-06-11T07:56:00.000-06:00

Obituaries Richard Rorty, Philosopher, Dies at 75 By PATRICIA COHEN Published: June 11, 2007 Mr. Rorty’s inventive work on philosophy, politics, literary theory and more made him one of the world’s most influential contemporary thinkers.http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/11/obituaries/11rorty.html?ex=1339300800&en=b307dcc7de05dc59&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Rich Little at the G8

2007-06-08T07:20:00.000-06:00

Well, its been blogged elsewhere, but its entertaining non-the-less, so here we go:bra-ba-ba-bum [drum roll] "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a very talented, er, young man with us tonight. He's always a crowd favorite and is quite the impressionist. So, please give him a warm welcome -- put your hands together for ... Vladimir Putin as Mahatma Gandhi!"From the Times of London:‘I’m a pure and

Flash!

2007-06-07T11:07:00.000-06:00

John B sent a link to one of his favorite flash sites [click here]. I haven't seen it yet. Go ahead, take a look, and give-up some reviews.If you know John, good for you! If not, he's likely to be a recurring presence on styroblog, so come back and get to know him, as filtered through the blog/internets.

20 Wheeler in Paw Paw

2007-06-07T06:43:00.000-06:00

Having lived in SW Michigan for 2 years and having had a strange episode in Paw Paw, MI, myself (remember the chicken woman, Sam?), this story has special resonance. Additionally, the fact that the CNN posting actually has a summary header ("Story Highlights") is eerily similar to The Onion's recent 24-second news cycle piece.The CNN story: Truck takes man in wheelchair on a wild ride

Unsexy science versus evocative narrative in pesticide policy

2007-06-06T07:43:00.000-06:00

Yesterday's (6.05.07) NYTIMES.com carried an interesting article that relates to popular opinions and policy-making and, I think, how this relates to passionate arguments versus unsexy science:Findings Fateful Voice of a Generation Still Drowns Out Real Science By JOHN TIERNEY Published: June 5, 2007 Rachel Carson’s warning on pesticides in “Silent Spring” ignored the good that they did.

Competing -pedias and branding

2007-06-05T20:12:00.000-06:00

A little while back I was listening to what Yulka calls the "blah, blah, blah"/"pecking at my brain", i.e., some public radio chatter.Part of the discussion was about the conservative (who gets to claim that title, and is it a lowercase "c" or an uppercase "C" -- as in "catholic" versus "Catholic"?) alternative to Wikipedia, named "Conservapedia" (ingenious).Today I surfed (heh) over there and

1st Post: You Can Skip It

2007-06-05T15:10:00.000-06:00

Or don't, and regret it, unless you are satisfied in testing your compulsiveness or idle curiosity. If so, well done, friend! For now, this is simply here as a place holder. Much like styrofoam. You should have known. Thanks, Matt.