Scatterplot
The whole world's getting fat
The prime culprit cited is urbanization and the changes it causes in diet and lifestyle. People move to cities and drink more sugary soft drinks and food drenched in cheap vegetable oils, while automobiles and tv's facilitate more sedentary lifestyles. Also, the market value of processed foods is 3X that of the foods straight off the farm, so multinational food companies add cheap sugar, fats, and oils to agricultural products.
On a related note, the USDA released a new food pyramid...s
Only available online, the pyramid is customized according to age, sex, and physical activity, 12 different pyramids in all. Seems to confusing to be practical. I'm to eat 9 ounces of grains, 3.5 cups of veggies, 2 cups of fruits, 3 cups of milk, and 6.5 ounces of meat & beans daily. Probably not going to happen. Not that I expected a magic bullet, but if one of the criticisms about the old pyramid was that everyone ignored it, this new pyramid isn't going to do much better. That little stick figure needs to work on his calves, and he has no neck, hands, or feet, which is quite sad.
Divorce rates not as high as people think
The common saying is that one in two marriages end in divorce, but the actual rate has never exceeded 41 percent, and it is on the decline among college graduates.
A handy new mid-range zoom for Nikon's digital SLRs
I've been looking for a lightweight mid-range zoom like this, especially for shooting sporting events. The lens is slow at f4-5.6, but that doesn't matter as much with a digital SLR b/c of adjustable ISO as long as the focus is quick.
Highlights from last week's late-night talk show monologues
Letterman on Tiger Woods: "Congratulations to Tiger Woods. Won his fourth Masters golf tournament. What an amazing accomplishment, tremendous. I was not aware of this, but if Tiger Woods wins one more green jacket, he officially becomes a Christo project."
This latest entry at Postsecret (a site that displays postcards, mailed in by random people, containing secrets) is funny, and mean
A Boards of Canada remix of "Broken Drum" from Beck's very cool Guero