As plain as the nose on your face

That’s pretty obvious, my mother would say. “As plain as the nose on your face.” Having inherited my honker from my dad, that is, I’d have to say, pretty obvious. Other things are pretty obvious, too, yet people steadfastly don’t see it. Take climate change. Not theory. Not speculated. Not a maybe. It is. There is a preponderance of evidence out there and even without an Excel spreadsheet, the polar bears will tell you, this is real. The last 20 years have been the hottest in at least 400 years. Arctic ice is thawing so rapidly that in another 30 years, arctic summers will be completely ice free! Coral reefs, which are highly sensitive to slight rises in ocean temperatures, have had record die-offs. (1)

There are still some nuts out there who think that this is something akin to the earth’s menopausal hot flash and a natural phenomenon, but look at it this way. Modern society produces tons of atmospheric gases every day, ostensibly creating a planet-sized snuggy that traps in heat. Industrial and auto pollution is an all time high. Why? Because there is an astonishing number of us. Back around 1 BC there were around 300 million people (about the number just in the United States today)in the entire world. It took 2000 years to bump that to 1.6 billion, or about 5 times as many. Then it took only the last 100 years to multiply that another FOUR TIMES to a world population of over 6 billion. There has not been a single other factor or species impacting the earth as much as we are.

Denial is apparently what some people do best and that also applies to getting prepared for emergencies. Now, if you live in Southern California, you WILL experience an earthquake. There is no thermometer to stick in the ground and say, “Wow, the ground is really heating up for a good one,” but the numbers do point to something big. Statistically speaking, earthquakes have occurred along the San Andreas Fault every 150 years or so. The last one was 155 years ago, so we are “ripe” for something. Unlike climate change, we don’t see markers letting us know how close we are to a large seismic event, so preparing it is really hard to get excited about.

Just like substantial climate change, the big one is coming, so let’s do something today. As far as climate change, think more carefully about your impact on the world. Can you walk more than drive? Can you purchase things that require less manufacturing? Can you buy cars that are less polluting? Sure you can. So you can also get a tub for your earthquake supplies. You can put a gallon of water person per day in there and toss in some hardy granola bars. Add a large zip-type bag of toilet supplies and you are one giant step on your way.

So, please, think of yourself, your family, and, if it helps, the polar bears. Some conscientious effort on your part will help us all.

(1) Read a great Op-Ed piece from the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-oreskes-judging-climate-change-20120122,0,6437230.story

Cruising Takes a Bruising

Aside from the snappy title, this weekend’s tragedy is far from light-hearted. A cruise ship called the Costa Concordia hit a reef Saturday, January 14, 2012, near Italy in its tour of the Mediterranean Sea. The Isola del Giglio, a lovely little island off the coast of Italy, situated just above the “knee” if you were to view Italy as a leg with a boot at the end, has a nasty little reef of sharp rocks just off its coast. Apparently the ship’s captain steered frighteningly very near the coast and off the original course when the ship found the rocks that lodged a giant boulder and put a 50 meter (150-foot) gash in the hull.

Whether human error or not, the real tragedy was seemingly in the manner in which the disaster was then handled. First of all, those on board were told that it was only an electrical problem, even though the ship was already starting to list. Secondly, the staff seemed ill-prepared to act appropriately to assemble and get people into life jackets and life rafts. Finally, the man at the helm, the ship’s Captain, did not react immediately to the situation and call for help. In fact, he left the vessel before everyone was off, which in Italy, carries a twelve-year sentence!

I have friends who cruise extensively and said that they feel very safe on the ships. While that is great, because disasters of this type CAN happen, however rare, we, as consumers, need to get more involved in our vacation plans than figuring out how many flip-flops to pack.

Whenever I travel, I consider the following things. I think you can find them helpful and possibly LIFE SAVING!

1. Always have maps of where you are, in the big picture and the small picture. When I travel, I like to have a street map of where I am, so I can use alternate routes if possible and steer away from areas that reportedly have problems. When I am in a hotel, the first thing I look at [after claiming which side of the bed I want...] is the emergency evacuation route on the back of the door. I want to know how far I am from the stairs and which way to turn if I cannot see because of smoke. I check windows to see if they open and what my options are if I need to exit that way. [NOTE: If I were in Burj Khalifa in Dubai, outside routes are definitely NOT an option... Curious how that would look? See the latest Mission Impossible-Ghost Protocol movie. Incredible.]

2. When flying, ALWAYS follow the emergency procedures spiel with the flight attendant. Check out the map and find out where your nearest two emergency exits are. Personally, I memorize where they ALL are.

3. Just because you are vacationing doesn’t mean that you aren’t prepared for emergencies! Find out where your emergency exits are. Check emergency equipment, such as fire extinguishers or fire alarms. Near water? Look for tsunami signs. In a foreign land? Learn at least a couple important phrases such as, “I need help,” “Fire,” and maybe the equivalent of “Get the heck out of here!”

4. Take responsibility. Take our cruise ship folks. Apparently no evacuation instructions were given, but if ANY emergency information is given, pay attention and then figure out how to do what they tell you when needed. If no information is given, seek it. Bug them! You pay good money for cruises, tours, or whatever, so make sure they do their job and give you all the tools necessary to make it safe and survivable.

I am not telling anyone to skip a cruise, or any other vacation plan, but you can prepare for it, so when the unthinkable happens, you will survive to tell the tale.

Article with photos of the disaster:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2086831/Costa-Concordia-cruise-ship-pictures-Trapped-survivor-Manrico-Giampedroni-airlifted-safety.html
Maps and diagram of ship and damage:
http://nationalpostnews.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/na0116_concordiahole1.gif

At last – an electronic device that understands me, literally!

In Las Vegas this week is the Consumer Electronics Show, or CES. Whether you know it by name or not, you have probably heard that this is THE event that announces all of the new gadgets that we cannot live without. This is a fabulous show, too, or so I have been told. Started in 1967 in New York City, this show is only open to those in the “biz,” or people who would market or sell these new fangled things and not the general public (us...). Nevertheless, the press is at this show and they are eager to let us all know vicariously what the latest technology is, soon in a store near you.

What caught my attention is the new smart phone app that basically becomes your TV remote control.* The best part is that there are no buttons to push (thankfully! because when I can’t get my TV remote to do what I want, I am hell bent on pushing EVERY button on the wretched thing...repeatedly and vigorously!). This literally turns your phone into your own teenager, but without the cost or dirty laundry. You can speak into the phone and tell it what you want your TV to do. How great is that!?

I recently got an iPhone and as much as I could never figure out why people gushed so much over their iPhones, I can now. It’s cute and smart and now I can even talk to it! “Siri, call my husband. Siri, set an alarm for 3:15...” and then it DOES the things I ask! They are also working on adding “gesture recognition,” which I would probably have to alter based on the gestures I currently make to get the TV to do what I want. [Does it recognize the throw-on-the-floor command?]

Think of the independence I will soon have. No longer will I need a spouse or child to help me record a TV program. No longer will I have to suffer their looks of exasperation or mocking laughter at trying to switch from DVD mode to regular TV. Ha! I can say to them. I don’t need you any more (well, at least for TV-related activities)! I have an app for that!

The next generation of these gadgets will use face recognition to identify who is running the show, which will make this gadget even better. It scans my face and knows which shows I like and what to offer me.

This technology is really fantastic and applicable to so many other facets in your life. You could inventory things, keep track of dates, and explore new alternatives, literally just by asking! Think of how much easier it will be to get prepared for just about anything! Wow, welcome to 2012, everyone.

See the article in the LA Times: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2012/01/ces-2012-vlingos-brings-a-virtual-helper-to-tv-viewing.html

Stop and smell the roses but please not with your cell phone

Four years ago I made a presentation at the National Health Physics Society meeting, and wrote a follow-up article for their Journal [The Radiation Safety Journal, Vol. 99, August 2010] about running an effective Radiation Safety Program. While I was writing from the perspective of a Health Physicist and my duties involved with radiation safety, it was really about how to effectively run any program. To my pleasant surprise, several people at the national meeting and from around the country responded very favorably to my words and simple, yet effective message: Be thoughtful, be funny, be realistic, be human.

Along with my requisite humor, I divided the presentation and article into six areas to achieve success. One of them called “Getting Yourself Organized” included a section on “disconnecting yourself from email for a while.” For me, this was really important. I felt so bombarded, almost continually, by people sending me messages, forwarding messages, and sharing the details of something with which I was only peripherally connected – and of course wanting/expecting an immediate response -- that I really needed to take a break from it all. Once I realized that I was spending several hours each week typing, reading, responding to emails that I also realized that I was wasting valuable time doing what I should do – getting out of my chair and doing something truly important and worthwhile!

I lovely friend of mine sent me a New York Times article entitled, The “Joy of Quiet” by Pico Iyer [December 29, 2011] that addresses this very concept. While he personally may have taken this concept to the extreme (by most people’s standards) by living in a remote part of Japan, checking his email only in the evenings, Monday-Friday, and never owning a cell phone, he touched upon that same concept that I noted in my 2007 lecture. To be effective, you really need to unplug yourself from time to time. You don’t need to take your cell phone to the bathroom. You don’t need to check your email at lunch, all evening, every holiday and weekend. You don’t need to have a Facebook account to exist, nor tweet every thought in your head.

My advice to “get up, get out and get going” rings truer and louder every day. Can you remember the last time you actually got out of your office and talked to someone about something? Do you remember the pleasantries exchanged and how much more effective your communication was? Sure, we are all busy, but when we de-humanize ourselves by making electronic mirages of ourselves, then, little by little, we cease to exist at all.

Yeah, OK, it is going to take me some time talk to everyone I need to, but isn’t that what we should all be about? Making connections, sharing thoughts, and observing those subtle physical messages that we send one another...Humanity. Yeah, it will take longer, but it will be so worth it.

Happy New Year, everyone. And I really hope to see you sometime this year.