Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Jean-Jacques Millet, artiste peintre
Petite note à propos du site web d'un ami de la famille de Caroline, le peintre Jean-Jacques Millet. C'est une site minimal, mais qui présente quand même quelques exemples de ses très nombreuses peintures. J'ai beaucoup plusieurs de ses oeuvres. J'imagine que le contenu du site sera bonifié avec le temps...
The Vaccine Book
My wife and I had our first baby a little over a year ago. Trying to be responsible parents, we decided not to follow the flock and read about vaccines before jumping in the suggested vaccines schedule offered. We then read a lot of books. A lot, really, from different sources and of different stance. And most were unsatisfactory to me, being clearly pro or anti vaccines, not providing a balanced and neutral analysis of the topic, or not reducing the confusion that surrounds information about vaccination.
But, the last book I read on vaccines was a book I can confidently recommend. Written by a pediatrician, it is surprisingly balanced and pretty informative. For every vaccine, its history, the commonness and its seriousness are discussed, the content of the shot, the potential side-effects, etc. Whether you choose to vaccine totally, partially or not at all your child, Dr. Sears' The Vaccine Book is a great ressource. Vaccination may be a delicate topic, it has been for us, and it's important to know what's at stake, where lies the uncertainties of science, what are the pros and the cons for the child, the parents and society. Some vaccines are clearly not imperatives nowadays, others may be worth considering the risks of the associated disease. For some vaccines, it's possible to wait until the child is a teenager and at that time verify if a natural immunization (better) has been developed, otherwise, go on with vaccination at that moment. Well, many possibilities, and to learn what's best and responsible to do, this book has helped me a great deal.
But, the last book I read on vaccines was a book I can confidently recommend. Written by a pediatrician, it is surprisingly balanced and pretty informative. For every vaccine, its history, the commonness and its seriousness are discussed, the content of the shot, the potential side-effects, etc. Whether you choose to vaccine totally, partially or not at all your child, Dr. Sears' The Vaccine Book is a great ressource. Vaccination may be a delicate topic, it has been for us, and it's important to know what's at stake, where lies the uncertainties of science, what are the pros and the cons for the child, the parents and society. Some vaccines are clearly not imperatives nowadays, others may be worth considering the risks of the associated disease. For some vaccines, it's possible to wait until the child is a teenager and at that time verify if a natural immunization (better) has been developed, otherwise, go on with vaccination at that moment. Well, many possibilities, and to learn what's best and responsible to do, this book has helped me a great deal.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
The Disappearing Male and Chemicals
The omnipresence of synthetic chemicals, exponentially increasing in diversity and concentration for the last 100 years, is not without consequences. Amongst these consequences, there's a dramatic reduction of male fertility, malformations and miscarriages, the birth of more females than males , etc. Most of the blamed chemicals have proven bad repercussions on animals, but very rare are longer term studies on humans. Of course, the chemical lobby will tell you the suspected synthetic chemicals are safe, which reminds us of the tobacco lobby that swore not so long ago that there's no link between smoking and lung cancer... This is not my invention, but it's the subject of the well done documentary with pertinent interviews that a friend sent me. It's named The Disappearing Male:
I'm happy we have a seemingly healthy one-year old daughter and hope we won't have serious problems engendering brothers and sisters for our little Vickie. Apparently harmless chemicals, dangerous synthetic compounds are one of the troubles of modern life and one of the global challenges for today and tomorrow. Thanks to the CBC Canadian public TV for providing the full documentary online - we don't own a TV.
"The Disappearing Male is about one of the most important, and least publicized, issues facing the human species: the toxic threat to the male reproductive system. The last few decades have seen steady and dramatic increases in the incidence of boys and young men suffering from genital deformities, low sperm count, sperm abnormalities and testicular cancer. [...] The Disappearing Male takes a close and disturbing look at what many doctors and researchers now suspect are responsible for many of these problems: a class of common chemicals that are ubiquitous in our world."
I'm happy we have a seemingly healthy one-year old daughter and hope we won't have serious problems engendering brothers and sisters for our little Vickie. Apparently harmless chemicals, dangerous synthetic compounds are one of the troubles of modern life and one of the global challenges for today and tomorrow. Thanks to the CBC Canadian public TV for providing the full documentary online - we don't own a TV.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Out of Gaz: Learning to live without oil
A good friend gave me the book 'Out of Gaz' by David Goodstein and that was a pretty interesting read. It's short, only 131 pages, and rather to the point. Critics say it's disjointed and there are better books about the worldwide depletion of oil, maybe, but that's the one I read and found it excellent.
So what it's all about? It's mainly about worldwide energy consumption. About how we are largely dependant on oil as a source of energy for everything and how that very source will be depleted in this century. It's doesn't matter much if it happens in 10, 20 or 50 years now, it will happen for sure and from an historical timeline perspective, it will happen very soon. The book also largely documents and details the peak oil and Hubbert Peak theory, which tells us the next energy crisis will not begin when the last drop of oil has been pumped, but rather when supply and demand can't play nice together anymore.
Large sections of the book are dedicated to the history of energy and the physics of energy. As an engineer myself, I was happy to read those parts. Entropy is also covered. Energy myths as well.
But what the book is also about, and probably that's the most dramatic part of it, is alternative sources of energy. The book seems to do a good job at enumerating and evaluating all the alternative energy sources and convince us that most, if not all of them, simply physically can't provide all the energy we need to sustain our actual rhythm of consumption! And worldwide demand for energy is exponentially increasing! It's not a matter of money: there is no simple technological fix.
It's a very cheap book, only a few dollars on Amazon (used, see first link above) and definitely worth the read.
Let's hope we wake up soon enough and that the inevitable bumps on the road ahead won't hurt too much.
So what it's all about? It's mainly about worldwide energy consumption. About how we are largely dependant on oil as a source of energy for everything and how that very source will be depleted in this century. It's doesn't matter much if it happens in 10, 20 or 50 years now, it will happen for sure and from an historical timeline perspective, it will happen very soon. The book also largely documents and details the peak oil and Hubbert Peak theory, which tells us the next energy crisis will not begin when the last drop of oil has been pumped, but rather when supply and demand can't play nice together anymore.
Large sections of the book are dedicated to the history of energy and the physics of energy. As an engineer myself, I was happy to read those parts. Entropy is also covered. Energy myths as well.
But what the book is also about, and probably that's the most dramatic part of it, is alternative sources of energy. The book seems to do a good job at enumerating and evaluating all the alternative energy sources and convince us that most, if not all of them, simply physically can't provide all the energy we need to sustain our actual rhythm of consumption! And worldwide demand for energy is exponentially increasing! It's not a matter of money: there is no simple technological fix.
It's a very cheap book, only a few dollars on Amazon (used, see first link above) and definitely worth the read.
Let's hope we wake up soon enough and that the inevitable bumps on the road ahead won't hurt too much.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
PASS – Google's 10 to the 100 submission
Amid working full time and taking care of our wonderful daughter, I took time to aggregate and repackage the PASS idea in a suitable format for Google's 10 to the 100 challenge. Maybe this is a vain attempt, but where is it written that our dreams must be small ones? Last time I wrote about PASS, I said I was convinced the project would come to life anyway in one form or another. This is still true. Then why spend time on it? Because I want the project to 'get it right', or at least go in the best direction possible, and be launched as soon as possible since the required technology is ripe. So many great ideas are badly implemented - that's what I'd like to avoid. Oh, and since my previous PASS entry, I stumbled onto these two links which provide related information. My only regret is I realized two days prior the submission's deadline that there were, well, only two days left, leaving little time to write a proper and nice submission. So here it is, my submission to Google's project 10 to the 100.
** 8. Your idea's name (maximum 50 characters):
PASS: Product Attribute Sharing for Sustainability
** 9. Please select a category that best describes your idea.
Opportunity: How can we help people better provide for themselves and their families?
** 10. What one sentence best describes your idea? (maximum 150 characters)
System providing valuable customized product information in a timely and convenient manner, enabling consumers to enhance their purchasing experience.
** 11. Describe your idea in more depth. (maximum 300 words)
PASS is a portable decision support system providing customized pertinent and validated product information in a timely and convenient manner, enabling consumers to drastically enhance their purchasing experience. This system encourages transparency, sustainable development, accountability, quality and efficiency. PASS's main components are the database, client softwares, and PASS-enabled devices.
The PASS database host products and services information and metadata. It includes the product's characteristics such as its name, manufacturer and model, associated barcode, the product's origin, its healthiness, safeness, quality, its price. When available, an assessment of the product's and manufacturer's environmental friendliness and impacts are included. Product information comes from known trustworthy and validated sources. The database could include moderated user generated content and user statistics (such as satisfaction) regarding the products.
The PASS client softwares are applications installed on the user computer and PASS-enabled devices. They are the bridge between the database and the user in the buying process. The applications are customizable and interoperable. They allow consumers to tailor the database information to their values and preferences (example: someone may favor local products and small producers, another one may favor healthy, vegan or nuts-free products, etc). The applications must provide the best mix of user-friendliness, features, pertinence and performance.
Based on multiple criterion from the database and user preferences, a few simple indicators allowing users to quickly make a decision are presented to the user. The applications can provide the full product information at request. The applications can also share a user's information and product's comments with his network of selected users.
The PASS-enabled devices are the smartphones, a portable dedicated device or computer with PASS client software installed. The device supply the product's information based on manufacturer and model and may have the ability to read product barcodes (via camera) and sync itself over the Internet.
** 12. What problem or issue does your idea address? (maximum 150 words)
The PASS system opens new doors in regards to accessing valuable product information at the moment consumers need it most. PASS provides the following:
- Quick access to hard to obtain trustworthy information.
- Obtain information when you need it, while in the buying process.
- Overcome information overload by accessing summarized and customized key information.
- Configure the flexible client-side system to tie it to your values, preferences (e.g. organic food, price, local producers, manufacturer's ethics) or health constraints (e.g. allergies).
- Promptly compare products and services using criterion that matters to you.
- Easily share valuable product assessment with your entourage.
** 13. If your idea were to become a reality, who would benefit the most and how? (maximum 150 words)
Anyone with a PASS-enabled smartphone or dedicated device (alternatively, anyone with access to a computer and preferably Internet access) ready to acquire products and services or gathering information about products and services.
Eventually, merchants and service providers, knowing clients can now easily learn about their product's quality and corporate ethics, will improve their offers and manufacturing processes to the benefit of everyone and the environment.
** 14. What are the initial steps required to get this idea off the ground? (maximum 150 words)
1 – Develop the server-side database and the client-side software. Optionally, develop a low-cost PASS dedicated devices as a cheaper alternative to owning a PASS-enabled smartphone.
2 – Build partnerships with existing trustworthy products information providers and transfer products information to the PASS database.
3 – Find a mean to cover costs of the project's implementation and maintenance.
The required technology to support the PASS project is ready and ripe. The organization managing the PASS project must unconditionally be neutral. Probably best is if it's a not-for-profit organization. I believe PASS software should be developed with open source code and be scalable. When appropriate, the colligated information should be available under a creative commons license and freely accessible.
** 15. Describe the optimal outcome should your idea be selected and successfully implemented. How would you measure it? (maximum 150 words)
In a matter of months, millions of people's consuming habits could be enhanced. The outcome would be better informed consuming habits for anyone using PASS. Overall, this decision support system encourages transparency, sustainable development, accountability, quality and efficiency. Ultimately, the system promotes fair and transparent competition at the worldwide scale.
This project's success can be directly measured by the number of registered members, their contributions to the system, the amount of accesses to the database and the frequency the PASS client softwares are downloaded and updated. The number of trustworthy content providers partners joining the project is also a measure of the project's success. Alternatively, the number of PASS dedicated devices built and distributed is an indirect indicator to the project's success.
UPDATE 20081020:
Missing from the submission are these elements: (1) PASS could also provide location-based suggestions, such as "a better similar product is available at a store 2 minutes from where you are." (2) The second missing element is how to make money out of this, and one obvious potential mean is advertising.
UPDATE 20090113:
Here's a /. discussion about the new Microsoft Tag system, with links to similar Nokia efforts and more.
UPDATE 20090426:
Here's a Google announcement on smarter shopping with smartphones, which is not PASS implemented at all, but a step in that direction.
** 8. Your idea's name (maximum 50 characters):
PASS: Product Attribute Sharing for Sustainability
** 9. Please select a category that best describes your idea.
Opportunity: How can we help people better provide for themselves and their families?
** 10. What one sentence best describes your idea? (maximum 150 characters)
System providing valuable customized product information in a timely and convenient manner, enabling consumers to enhance their purchasing experience.
** 11. Describe your idea in more depth. (maximum 300 words)
PASS is a portable decision support system providing customized pertinent and validated product information in a timely and convenient manner, enabling consumers to drastically enhance their purchasing experience. This system encourages transparency, sustainable development, accountability, quality and efficiency. PASS's main components are the database, client softwares, and PASS-enabled devices.
The PASS database host products and services information and metadata. It includes the product's characteristics such as its name, manufacturer and model, associated barcode, the product's origin, its healthiness, safeness, quality, its price. When available, an assessment of the product's and manufacturer's environmental friendliness and impacts are included. Product information comes from known trustworthy and validated sources. The database could include moderated user generated content and user statistics (such as satisfaction) regarding the products.
The PASS client softwares are applications installed on the user computer and PASS-enabled devices. They are the bridge between the database and the user in the buying process. The applications are customizable and interoperable. They allow consumers to tailor the database information to their values and preferences (example: someone may favor local products and small producers, another one may favor healthy, vegan or nuts-free products, etc). The applications must provide the best mix of user-friendliness, features, pertinence and performance.
Based on multiple criterion from the database and user preferences, a few simple indicators allowing users to quickly make a decision are presented to the user. The applications can provide the full product information at request. The applications can also share a user's information and product's comments with his network of selected users.
The PASS-enabled devices are the smartphones, a portable dedicated device or computer with PASS client software installed. The device supply the product's information based on manufacturer and model and may have the ability to read product barcodes (via camera) and sync itself over the Internet.
** 12. What problem or issue does your idea address? (maximum 150 words)
The PASS system opens new doors in regards to accessing valuable product information at the moment consumers need it most. PASS provides the following:
- Quick access to hard to obtain trustworthy information.
- Obtain information when you need it, while in the buying process.
- Overcome information overload by accessing summarized and customized key information.
- Configure the flexible client-side system to tie it to your values, preferences (e.g. organic food, price, local producers, manufacturer's ethics) or health constraints (e.g. allergies).
- Promptly compare products and services using criterion that matters to you.
- Easily share valuable product assessment with your entourage.
** 13. If your idea were to become a reality, who would benefit the most and how? (maximum 150 words)
Anyone with a PASS-enabled smartphone or dedicated device (alternatively, anyone with access to a computer and preferably Internet access) ready to acquire products and services or gathering information about products and services.
Eventually, merchants and service providers, knowing clients can now easily learn about their product's quality and corporate ethics, will improve their offers and manufacturing processes to the benefit of everyone and the environment.
** 14. What are the initial steps required to get this idea off the ground? (maximum 150 words)
1 – Develop the server-side database and the client-side software. Optionally, develop a low-cost PASS dedicated devices as a cheaper alternative to owning a PASS-enabled smartphone.
2 – Build partnerships with existing trustworthy products information providers and transfer products information to the PASS database.
3 – Find a mean to cover costs of the project's implementation and maintenance.
The required technology to support the PASS project is ready and ripe. The organization managing the PASS project must unconditionally be neutral. Probably best is if it's a not-for-profit organization. I believe PASS software should be developed with open source code and be scalable. When appropriate, the colligated information should be available under a creative commons license and freely accessible.
** 15. Describe the optimal outcome should your idea be selected and successfully implemented. How would you measure it? (maximum 150 words)
In a matter of months, millions of people's consuming habits could be enhanced. The outcome would be better informed consuming habits for anyone using PASS. Overall, this decision support system encourages transparency, sustainable development, accountability, quality and efficiency. Ultimately, the system promotes fair and transparent competition at the worldwide scale.
This project's success can be directly measured by the number of registered members, their contributions to the system, the amount of accesses to the database and the frequency the PASS client softwares are downloaded and updated. The number of trustworthy content providers partners joining the project is also a measure of the project's success. Alternatively, the number of PASS dedicated devices built and distributed is an indirect indicator to the project's success.
UPDATE 20081020:
Missing from the submission are these elements: (1) PASS could also provide location-based suggestions, such as "a better similar product is available at a store 2 minutes from where you are." (2) The second missing element is how to make money out of this, and one obvious potential mean is advertising.
UPDATE 20090113:
Here's a /. discussion about the new Microsoft Tag system, with links to similar Nokia efforts and more.
UPDATE 20090426:
Here's a Google announcement on smarter shopping with smartphones, which is not PASS implemented at all, but a step in that direction.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Mirages d'un Eldorado
Ah bon... je me retrouve dans un générique de documentaire ! J'ai pas vraiment de mérite autre que d'avoir passé quelques heures (une dizaine au total ?) à aider un collègue pour trouver des données satellitaires historiques et récentes sur les "glaciers soit-disant disparus" dont il est question dans le film ainsi que quelques autres informations et recommendations ...
J'ai pas encore vu le film, qui sort la semaine prochaine au cinéma. Je n'ai aucune idée jusqu'à présent s'ils ont décidé d'ignorer mes inputs. J'ai droit à un 0,1 seconde de gloire ? ;-) Le site web du film « Mirages d'un Eldorado ».
J'ai pas encore vu le film, qui sort la semaine prochaine au cinéma. Je n'ai aucune idée jusqu'à présent s'ils ont décidé d'ignorer mes inputs. J'ai droit à un 0,1 seconde de gloire ? ;-) Le site web du film « Mirages d'un Eldorado ».
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
MacOS X vs Ubuntu- A Personal Assessment
Copied from my Slashdot journal:
Here's my problem: I use macs at home. Ok I admit it, it's not a really problem because I believe it's the best overall user experience for me. Even if I'm a heavy open source software user (and sporadic contributor) and enthusiast, I still haven't been convinced Ubuntu is ready for me. I don't have a lot of Ubuntu experience despite using Debian at work, but Slashdot users do! I don't want or need a flamewar, I'd like to get your informed feedback. I wrote a short personal assessment of why I stick with Macs instead of switching to Ubuntu right away. Where I am wrong? My short text quickly looks at the software I, and any average user, use on a computer: email (Apple's Mail vs Thunderbird / other), Spotlight vs Beagle, etc. To reassure Ubuntu fans, here's an extract: "I found this interrogation from one of my colleagues, "will MacOSX forever stay more advanced than Ubuntu?". I tend to believe the answer's no and as a consequence, you'll eventually see me use an open source operating system on my primary computer at home. We're not just there yet."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)