A Harvard scholar has written a soon to be published book which asserts that Hollywood did not just collaborate with Nazi Germany, it aided Adolf Hitler directly. Ben Urwand, currently at Harvard's Society of Fellows has written the book "The Collaboration: Hollywood's Pact With Hitler," to be released in October. According to press reports (I have not read the book yet), he draws from German and American archives that studio bosses, many of them Jewish immigrants cut films scene by scene to suit Nazi officials so that the films could be re-purposed into Nazi propaganda films. In the book, he ...
By Jeff Newman Hempel watched the scrawny girl fish off the skiff in the late afternoon sun. The thought of leaving her cut into his heart. “Grampa, can we work on the table later on?” she asked. “Sure, if you want. Then homework. It’s important.” “I know. Mom said it’s important but I like workin’ in the shop better.” “School is more important,” he said. “Will I always be with you grampa?” “Not always. You’ll be grown up one day.” “But that’s not for a long time, right grampa?” “Right. Not for a long time.” They caught two big catfish and cooked them for dinner. The man stood by the girl ...
Posted on August 21, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
Soon, individuals will have mobile applications for their I-Phone or I-Pad which will give them genetic information they can use to stay healthy, fight disease and prevent disease. One application will hold your genome information right in your cell phone for access by your physician. This is expected to help physicians to provide more customized […]
Posted on August 12, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
MIT researchers are using data mining and large populations of people to study human behavior and recently won Pentagon challenge and $40,000 prize as the first group to report the locations of ten red weather balloons set aloft from secret locations. Thousands of groups signed up for the contest but the winning group lead by […]
Posted on August 9, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
IBM is about to deploy a system that will predict traffic flow up to an hour before it occurs, giving travelers ample time to avoid trouble. In pilot tests in Singapore, the forecasts across 500 urban locations accurately predicted traffic colume 85 to 93 % if the time. The core of the product is predictive […]
Posted on August 8, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
According to various TV rating services, the show HOUSE M.D. is the top rated television show. Why? First, I want to disclaim that I do like this show myself, so I may not be totally objective here. First, I think viewers are attracted to the unique personality of the main character who is antisocial, arrogant, […]
Posted on August 8, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
After exploring some recent efforts at data mining in medicine in this blog, I yeared for more info about the use of data mining in social media generally. This isn’t easy to come by if you are not in this arena. I did find some relevant writings on a fairly new site called Hunch and its co-founder Caterina Fake, who […]
Posted on August 8, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
DHEA, a naturally occuring hormone secreted by the body’s adrenal gland, when given in supplement form increases a woman’s chance for conception by 23%, according to researchers in a controlled study. Fertility physicians now recommend DHEA supplements for women trying to get pregant.
Posted on August 1, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
Heavy aerobics increases memory, mental speed,reaction time and cognitive flexibility. This is the finding of researchers and published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings. Other research has suggested that intense exercise enhances neurogensis, the growth of new nerves in the brain.
Posted on July 31, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman
A new study published in Neurobiology of Learning and Memory reveals that intense intervals of exercise including weight training, in which the maximum aerobic potential is met, will consistently boost brain power. For example, it was found that two 3-minute sprints spaced 2 minutes apart to the point of maximum yields a 20% faster vocabulary […]