I just read this fantastic article about August in DC-- a month often complained about, when in fact there are so many reasons to celebrate! This article definitely got me excited about my beloved home city. Despite the near rainforest conditions that are DC in August--so humid, so hot-- there are tons of things to enjoy.
Some of the highlights the article mentions:
--amazing tomatoes, better than California (and the other farmer's market bounty! the watermelons and corn are sublime, too!)
--thinned out crowds (goodbye Congress and Hill staffers!) and thinned out traffic
-- quieter streets, running trails, and restaurant crowds
--Nats getting better (maybe?)
and what I'd like to add:
--free live music and outdoor movies everywhere you turn
--Pleasant Pops (actually a year round treat)
--free public pools for DC residents
-- a million rooftop decks and sidewalk cafes
-- warm summer nights filled with fireflies
Enjoy DC all year round--even in August! The city is unique in what it offers, and in it's political energy. It's changed a lot in the last decade or two, and continues to grow and attract new comers. Soak in this time in history. Happy summer!
What is the future of food? How can we reduce world hunger? I found this information from Washington Post "Scientists think they have found the answer to this and many other food related questions. On Monday, Scientists unveiled the world’s first lab-grown beef burger in London, frying it in a little oil and butter and serving it to volunteers in what they hope is the start of a food revolution. The development may have a big impact on the future of food, as organizations such as the United Nations struggle to develop ways of feeding the world’s growing population without significant environmental impact. Not only could it help feed the planet, but it also could help solve environmental problems stemming from conventional meat production. The volunteers pronounced the patty, developed at a cost of more than $330,000 with support from Google co-founder Sergey Brin, as tasting “almost like a burger.”"
Wow. That is my first reaction after reading the article.Science and technology have come a long way, but isn't there better use of our resources and knowledge than completely manufacturing food. I personally don't want to be eating food that has been doctored in a lab. Whenever I hear of some groundbreaking technology or system that is supposed to advanceFood companies have stakeholders to please, shareholders to satisfy, and government regulations to deal with and it is very interesting to learn how food companies lobby officials and expand sales by marketing to people in developing countries. The food industry plays politics as well as or better than other industries and this is what impacts the future of food the most.
Are you willing to try this new science burger? What is the future of food?
Many of us felt outraged or devastated when we heard the news of the George Zimmerman trial on Friday night. The news was heartbreaking--and a true indicator of our national climate.
George Zimmerman was found not guilty for the murder of a minor, a high school student, a very young black man. He was found not guilty because the murder was in self-defense.
What I think this case raises, whether or not we believe Zimmerman is guilty, whether or not Zimmerman is guilty, is what makes this a self-defense case.
Trayvon was very young, much smaller than Zimmerman, and carrying no weapon. He was no realistic threat to Zimmerman. What he was, however, was a young black male in a hoodie. This is something that plays deeply into our national psychology. We discriminate against people that fit this description daily; we ourselves might feel fear when we see someone like this in the street late at night.
Zimmerman is no monster, he is just like every American. He did an unspeakable act, but according to his case, he did it out of fear, out of self-defense. Why did he feel fear? Because he encountered a black male wearing "street clothing." We are all conditioned to this fear to a point. Our culture is based in roots of racism, misunderstanding, and bigotry. Our American way of life has taught us who to fear by physical description, and it has taught us who matters, who to believe. All by appearance.
Let's find justice for Trayvon by recognizing the poison in the very roots of our nation, and address that psychology. Zimmerman is merely one piece in a much larger game.
Overdressed is the study on our culture's new obsession with low-cost, discount clothing. Modern Americans prefer quantity over quality, and we shop at discount chains like Target, H&M, and Forever 21 for colorful outfits that are practically throw away. Some of these clothes we can tell when we purchase them won't make it through one wash cycle, but we want it for one special occasion. Shopping has become an everyday occurrence, and the trends shift rapidly to catch the frequent shopper's eye on each trip. With styles changing so frequently to appeal to consumers, it is easy to get caught up in the "now" trend.
Coming with this idea that we need more clothing options and the ability to keep up with the trends comes the idea that clothing needs to be cheap. Shoppers often brag to one another about bargains and "steals" that they get while shopping. We want our clothing to be cheap and in large quantity. This is a shift in our society--clothing used to be much more expensive and people would cherish the few items they had--reheeling shoes, patching pants, fixing hems and seams. Comparatively, clothing is cheaper now than it ever has been in history. In order to meet this consumer demand, clothing producers have to take some short cuts--making most clothing of poor quality. This practice also drives the cost of high end fashion and designers even higher. As more people covet the designer brands for their quality and their exclusive appeal, the prices skyrocket. Mid-level clothing boutiques can't compete, needing to pay for their materials and overhead, they can't discount their clothing as much as big box stores and they don't have the same fetishized appeal as notorious designers.
Finally, with so much demand for clothing quantity, there is a real environmental strain. Producing clothing has huge water costs associated with it, as well as mass amounts of energy necessary for production. The "disposable clothing" movement (buying cheap clothes that you might only wear once or twice) is an environmental dilemma and is not a sustainable practice. It is much more sustainble to buy clothing second-hand, to cherish what you own, and to pick pieces that will last, despite them costing a bit more.
I found this book culturally enlightening, and it has challenged to curb some of my own shopping habits in order to be more sustainable and live more ethically. I encourage others to read and learn about the business practices, bad working conditions, and environmental costs in cheap fashion.
A scare on the Philadelphia Benjamin Parkway in caused a human stampede on Thursday night. 30 people treated by medics, children lost, thousands terrified and many unsure of the cause of their fear and angst. Was it a gun, BB gun, firecrackers thrown at a crowd, or simply a motorcycle back fire? This was how I spent my Independence Day.
This year to celebrate the 4th of July I joined family and friends on a Philadelphia adventure. The day kicked off with an Independence Day parade and followed with a free concert on the Benjamin Parkway with the backdrop of the famous Art Museum. It was reported that over 500,000 people were in attendance. It felt like a crowd of over a million as people pushed through for a better view and disrupted family picnics. The concert starred John Mayer, Grace Potter, J-Cole, Jill Scott and Ne-Yo. To conclude the fun night was the fireworks show perfectly displayed over the illuminated art museum. My group and I headed to exit while also stopping to take pictures and view the beauty of the firework lit sky. What happened next was something right out of a movie. The best way I can describe it from my point of view was the scene in Lion King where the wild beast are stampeding which eventually lead to the death of Mufasa.
While standing in the blocked off parkway I heard screams coming from behind. Turning around I saw a crowd of at least 200 people running towards us. The look on their faces were of pure terror. I heard someone close by yell "run" and before the crowd reached us my family dispersed from the street. I saw people running off to the side up against a building and I joined them. People were yelling, crying, screaming "some one's been shot" another yelled "It was a bomb". I looked around and realized I had been separated from my party. I reached for my phone in my back pocket and it was gone. Looking forward in the street I saw the stampede of people run by. As the street cleared people near me started to clear our hiding spot and looking for their loved ones. I found my group, but not without some bumps and bruises of our own. I looked down and saw my arms were shaking.
(Below is a Youtube video filmed by individuals caught in the stampede which was featured on Fox29 Philadelphia.)
Walking back to our hotel in the Center City we saw cops gathering, firetrucks, ambulances. Everyone seemed very confused and scared. No one knew what had happened. What caused hundreds of people to run in terror. Varied reports have been released. A report form NBC10 Philadelphia state a man fired a BB gun at the crowd while Fox29 reports firecrackers thrown at the crowd. Whatever the cause, it was amplified drastically by the number of people in the area and the fear many have of being caught in a mass attack. I heard people saying "it's like the Boston marathon or"it's a mass shooting". These recent events are what I think cause the human stampede.
We live in a world today where a man opens fire on innocent moviegoers, where backpack bombers attack a historical marathon, where young children are murdered in school. I don't believe this event is related to the formers, but it is because of events like those that people were in danger. The fear of being caught in a mass attack caused a mass riot of its own. Such action could have easily left a greater physical impact. I have only read of one serious injury with most of the rest being treated at the scene. But if you watch the videos of that night you get a glimpse into what most of us felt as the panic spread through the parkway.
A culture of fear. This may very well be the real cause of the panic and the human stampede. Many would suggest that it's better to be safe than sorry, but what about when this fear has such a ripple effect that it amplifies a small incident into a truly fearful event.
What would you do right now if you learned that you were going to die in ten minutes? So take a couple of minutes to let that question settle in and decide how you would respond. This year I've made a point to really increase the number and variety of books I read. To help with this goal I've set up a Goodreads account and have been tracking my progress and finding new books to add to my list. One of my selections in June was "Stumbling on Happiness" by Daniel Gilbert. Gilbert poses the above mentioned question and many others to readers. As a scientist he also includes scientific studies and experiments throughout the book to provide context and science to support his research. When tackling the questions as to what will make one happy Gilbert has three points.
1. When we imagine our state of mind (happiness, sadness, feeling due to hypothetical events), key details may be added or missing without us realizing it. (Not unlike the blind spot.) Very often, it's those details that ultimately make us happy. 2. When we imagine the future (or recall the past), it is far less imaginative than we think. Our mental picture will be very much like the present and our "imagined" feelings will be strongly influenced by the current state of mind. 3. When events actually happen, we view it far differently than before it had happened. Our psychological "immune system" will distort our perception of major psychological events to help shield us from undesirable effects (pain, depression). In the end Gilbert proposes a solution to how one can predict what will make them happy that many would probably disagree and argue against. The solution presented by Dr. Gilbert to accurately estimate our happiness is to draw our conclusion from people with similar backgrounds and experiences. Many of us feel we are so unique that we couldn't possibly judge our own appreciation of an experience solely based on the experience of another, but this is Gilbert's argument. I rated this book a "3" out of 5 on the Goodreads rating system. I did enjoy the topic and Gilbert includes several fun pictures and experiments to try out yourself, but at times he can be very technical when discussing scientific research which can be laborious to read and comprehend quickly. Has anyone read the book yet? How would you respond to the introduction question? --Krystal (Purchase this book here on Amazon)
3 women, 1 sport, where is all of the money in women sports?
About two weeks ago Forbes released their list of the top 100 paid athletes. There were only three women present on this list and all three participate in the same sport, tennis. Maria Sharapova, Li Na and Serena Williams were the only three women to make the list.
I find this list to be very interesting. First of all, the reason these women even made the list were not because of their salary and earnings from their sport, which are comparably rather low than the other athletes on the list, but because of the endorsements they have received. It is great to see two of my favorite female athletes on this list, but disheartening that no women from any other sports were able to make the list. What about Abby Wombach & Hope Solo representing soccer, or Danika Patrick for racing. It's clear from this Forbes list and other lists of the top female athletes that the only female sport that can compete with its male counterparts is tennis. Look at this list of the top paid female athletes in the world.
Looking at this list makes you want to encourage your daughters and female friends to pick up a tennis racket rather than a softball or basketball if they're looking to receive fame and fortune. What do you think? How can more women and more female sports be represented in these types of list? These sports are not nearly as popular as basketball, soccer, volleyball and softball in grade school mainly because of the costs that can be associated in participating in these sports., but should more women be encouraged and supported to play tennis and golf?
