FutureVigil (tm) » prediction

Oil Slick Could hit East Coast in Weeks Gov. Scientists Say

Jeffrey Newman — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 23:53:20 +0000

The BP oil slick could hit the east coast in a matter of weeks and will probably spread across thousands of miles of Atlantic shorelines, government scientists have reported. A computer model analysis from the National Center for Atmospheric research shows oil winding around Key West moving up to North Carolina and then spreading east towards Europe. The model is a rough estimate of the probable pathway and cannot be verified until the progress of the actual oil spill is measured over the next few weeks. However, the damaging effects are considered significant and the risks to the East Coast high.

E-Book Tidal Wave: The Future Has Arrived

Jeffrey Newman — Fri, 21 May 2010 20:13:30 +0000

The e-book digital revolution is sweeping the world and altering the playing field for the book industry disrupting the traditional publishers who have dominated for a century. Electronic books comprize only 5% of the market today but are accelerating exponentially. By the end of 2012 digital books will exceed 25% of unit sales and another 25% sold on line which means roughly half of sales will be on the internet. Some are projecting that books stores will follow the music stores which closed en masse when consumers began downloading music digitally. With the arrival of Apple’s IPad the potential for downloading any book available became a reality. The consumer stands to gain with the price of on-line books being only a fraction of hard copies.

Healthy Care vs. Healthcare

Jeffrey Newman — Fri, 14 May 2010 01:09:49 +0000

It seems to me that there should be some real interest on the part of our government and private sector in creatingo a “healthy care” industry focused on disease prevention and overall wellbeing. This would include nutrition and diet, exercise, lifestyle enhancemnet and mental health sustenance (sans drugs) including intellectual and emotional stimulation. We can’ t rely on healthcare providers to lead the way here, as doctors are trained to treat illnesses, mostly chronic illness and not to promote health and wellness. Through no fault of there own, they are wired to treat problems with drugs, surgery or other traditional therapeutics after the illness or disease has struck. So where is the engine for for the healthycare industry? There really isn’t one yet. There is a growing number of gyms and workout centers,a booming interest in nutraceuticals and vitamins but no company has approached the whole picture with an integrated approach to lifestyle, mental well being, nutritional medicine and exercise training. In addition, programs could be tailored towards age levels and interests. So why isn’t the government providing incentives for this since it would be a logical choice to save on rising healthcare costs, a lot of which goes into chronic care for cardiovascular disease and diabetes? Why hasn’t Nestles or Coke joined forces with Nike and Stoneyfield Farms, Kashi, Hollywood fitness and Bikram hot yoga? It’s got to happen if you believe in the power of the free market system. I don’t think the doctors need to worry about being put out of business for a long time. Maybe we need to create some scientific peer reviewed studies to show that a combination of medical nutrition, intense daily exercise, variety and lifelong learning will help to cure some of our major diseases and the economic burdens which they place on society. Of course we will need to fight the power of the food industry but that can be done. Look at what happened to big tobacco.

Are Volcanos Now Triggered by Global Warming?

Jeffrey Newman — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 00:16:49 +0000

Iceland-volcano-eruption-volcanic-activity-in-the-land-of-fire-and-iceA vast cloud of volcanic ash is sweeping across northern Europe causing hundreds of flights to be cancceled due to rock and glass from the Icelandic Eyjafjallajokull glacier volcano. Scientists point out that the thinning of ice over volcanic areas will criminsh the weight of the crust causing more eruptions. These shifting of stresses could cause eruptions in unexpected places which have previously been inactive. See New Scientist

Why Ipad is the future of computing

Jeffrey Newman — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 00:22:00 +0000

The Ipad embraces the ideas that photos, music, movies and documents of all kinds, will let you do everything you can imagine for work or play. It is going to become the universal information appliance, which defines the term user friendly.

The ipad or versions that will be like it will allow for one device to view movies, listen to music, communicate by videoconferencing and play video games on one device with rich visuals. This is the future of computing.

GOOGLE’S OUTAGES IN CHINA–THE END?

Jeffrey Newman — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 20:01:28 +0000

on Tuesday of this week, Google’s search engine site in China stopped working. Users in China received error messages for Google searches. Google also said that its mobile services were being partially blocked and that the Chinese government was definitely behind it. Beijing has expressed anger at Google for refusing to censors the site. Is this the beginning of the end for Google in China? If so, the company should be lauded for its courage and ultimately if other companies stood up to the goliath in the same way, it would change more quickly. The average modern chinese citizen wants to be more part of the modern world and the economic incentives for this abound. This is why I think the government will finally evolve on human rights and censorship issues–but no without prodding by such great companies as Google.

What happens if political gridlock kills healthcare

Jeffrey Newman — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 01:13:12 +0000

Few have projected the details of what will occur if the current healthcare initiatives are stalemated in Washington. There has been some general talk of costly overruns for Medicare and a significant increase in interest rates as well as a depressed stock market but these hallmarks really don’t mean much. I would like someone to run an extrapolation as to when the costly healthcare system will begin to depress the economy and the details of what specifically will happen with Medicare. This shouldn’t that hard to do for the Office of The General Budget or the Auditor. If The American Public could see the numbers in black and white and if they were presented with a realistic healthcare proposal with the specifics on how it will be paid for–all set forth in understandable detail, I don’t think there would be as much opposition to a plan as here is now. Of course, I could be wrong.

Top Potential Medical Breakthrough Gamechangers for 2010

Jeffrey Newman — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:53:06 +0000

1. HIV Vaccine: Researchers have deciphered two antibodies produced by some HIV patients which have neutralized many HIV strains. These are far more potents than the four previously discovered and may be specific to the developing world where 95% of the new cases happen. The current focus is on creating a vaccine active ingredient to produce antibodies. 2. Cancer Prevention and Treatment: Oncologists are now prescribing exercise for their patients as it boosts survival and lowers recurrence rates. Brisk walking 3 hours a week lowered breast and colon cancer mortality by 50%. 3. Alzheimer’s treatment: Researchers at West Virginia have developed a test and treatment for Alzheimer’s disease relating to a defectuve ezyme involved in memory function. Low doses of the chemo drug bryostatin reactivated these defective enzymes restoring memory. Human clinical trials are starting this year. 4. Heart Attack Prevention: A prescription drug Lovaza is FDA approved to treat high triglycerides and has 3-4 more EPA and DHA forms of Omega 3 as usually found in fish oils.

Bookless Future Libraries

Jeffrey Newman — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:33:11 +0000

What will libraries be like in the future. A growing number of librarians are already planning for bookless libraries, administered by central sources in order to allow for “sustainable scholarship”. At one recent conference, experts explained that groups of universities are already exploring shared digital repositories and archives. This collaborative outsourcing will also include catalogue services such as those provided by Online Computer Library Center Inc.. Due to the enormous costs of maintaining libraries as well as the economic meltdown, administrators are already forced to make changes which are eventually expected to lead to libraries without hardcover books.

The Doomsday Clock Graph

Jeffrey Newman — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 02:19:39 +0000